Swordfish

Where it lives

Swordfish are cosmopolitan, found in temperate to tropical oceans worldwide and in the Mediterranean. They are highly migratory, moving toward the poles in summer and the equator in winter, and can dive below 800 m thanks to a specialized eye-warming organ that aids vision in cold deep water.

How to recognise it

A long, cylindrical body with no pelvic fins and a flat, sword-like extension of the upper jaw — broader and flatter than a marlin’s spear. Adults are scaleless. The first dorsal fin is tall and sail-like in juveniles, shorter in adults. Coloration runs metallic purple-blue above and dull white below.

Diet & behavior

Solitary, deep-diving ambushers that slash through squid and fish schools with their bill before circling back to feed. Spawning happens in warm equatorial waters, with pelagic eggs.

Fisheries & Conservation

Globally Least Concern after decades of recovery; once heavily depleted in the North Atlantic, stocks rebuilt under quota management. Longline fishing remains the primary commercial method.