Other identification tools | FishBase

Fish Identification: Find Species


Family: Hemiramphidae Halfbeaks



(See list of species below)


Select Class:     Select Order:   
Select Family: Subfamily:     Select Genus:
Select Ocean (marine/brackish) or Continent (freshwater):
                                                          Specify a country:
Total number of spines in dorsal and anal fins (optional)

62 species (see list below)

1 of 1 Jump to:

Photo by Dumma, S.

Indo-West Pacific
Max. Length 36 cm SL
Arrhamphus sclerolepis Günther, 1866

Photo by Dumma, S.
 
Arrhamphus sclerolepis
[Northern snubnose garfish]
No picture found
Southwest Pacific
Max. Length 28 cm
 
Arrhamphus sclerolepis krefftii
[Snubhose garfish]

Photo by Albernas, J.I.H.

Western Atlantic
Max. Length 26 cm TL
Chriodorus atherinoides Goode & Bean, 1882

Photo by Albernas, J.I.H.
 
Chriodorus atherinoides
[Hardhead halfbeak]

Photo by FAO

Eastern Atlantic
Max. Length 61 cm TL
Euleptorhamphus velox Poey, 1868

Photo by FAO
 
Euleptorhamphus velox
[Flying halfbeak]

Photo by Shao, K.T.

Indo-Pacific
Max. Length 53 cm TL
Euleptorhamphus viridis (van Hasselt, 1823)

Photo by Shao, K.T.
 
Euleptorhamphus viridis
[Ribbon halfbeak]

Photo by FAO

Indo-Pacific
Max. Length 34 cm TL
Hemiramphus archipelagicus Collette & Parin, 1978

Photo by FAO
 
Hemiramphus archipelagicus
[Jumping halfbeak]

Photo by Freitas, R.

Western Atlantic
Max. Length 40 cm TL
Hemiramphus balao Lesueur, 1821

Photo by Freitas, R.
 
Hemiramphus balao
[Balao halfbeak]

Photo by FAO

Western Central Atlantic
Max. Length 44 cm TL
Hemiramphus bermudensis Collette, 1962

Photo by FAO
 
Hemiramphus bermudensis
[Bermuda halfbeak]

Photo by Stewart, D.

Western Atlantic
Max. Length 55 cm TL
Hemiramphus brasiliensis (Linnaeus, 1758)

Photo by Stewart, D.
 
Hemiramphus brasiliensis
[Ballyhoo halfbeak]

Photo by Shao, K.T.

Indo-West Pacific
Max. Length 23 cm TL
Hemiramphus convexus Weber & de Beaufort, 1922

Photo by Shao, K.T.
 
Hemiramphus convexus
[Halfbeak]

Photo by Randall, J.E.

Pacific Ocean
Max. Length 34.6 cm SL
Hemiramphus depauperatus Lay & Bennett, 1839

Photo by Randall, J.E.
 
Hemiramphus depauperatus
[Tropical half-beak fish]

Photo by Seycek, O.

Indo-West Pacific
Max. Length 45 cm TL
Hemiramphus far (Forsskål, 1775)

Photo by Seycek, O.
 
Hemiramphus far
[Black-barred halfbeak]

Photo by Randall, J.E.

Pacific Ocean
Max. Length 40 cm SL
Hemiramphus lutkei Valenciennes, 1847

Photo by Randall, J.E.
 
Hemiramphus lutkei
[Lutke's halfbeak]

Photo by Randall, J.E.

Western Indian Ocean
Max. Length 26 cm SL
Hemiramphus marginatus (Forsskål, 1775)

Photo by Randall, J.E.
 
Hemiramphus marginatus
[Yellowtip halfbeak]

Photo by Good, P.

Western Pacific
Max. Length 31.5 cm SL
Hemiramphus robustus Günther, 1866

Photo by Good, P.
 
Hemiramphus robustus
[Three-by-two garfish]

Photo by Robertson, R.

Eastern Pacific
Max. Length 48 cm TL
Hemiramphus saltator Gilbert & Starks, 1904

Photo by Robertson, R.
 
Hemiramphus saltator
[Longfin halfbeak]

Photo by Randall, J.E.

Pacific Ocean
Max. Length 30 cm TL
Hyporhamphus acutus (Günther, 1872)

Photo by Randall, J.E.
 
Hyporhamphus acutus
[Pacific halfbeak]

Photo by Randall, J.E.

Indo-Pacific
Max. Length 38 cm SL
Hyporhamphus affinis (Günther, 1866)

Photo by Randall, J.E.
 
Hyporhamphus affinis
[Tropical halfbeak]

Photo by Randall, J.E.

Southwest Pacific
Max. Length 39.8 cm SL
Hyporhamphus australis (Steindachner, 1866)

Photo by Randall, J.E.
 
Hyporhamphus australis
[Eastern sea garfish]

Photo by FAO

Indo-Pacific
Max. Length 16.5 cm SL
Hyporhamphus balinensis (Bleeker, 1858)

Photo by FAO
 
Hyporhamphus balinensis
[Balinese garfish]
No picture found
South America
Max. Length 10 cm SL
 
Hyporhamphus brederi
[]
No picture found
Western Indian Ocean
Max. Length 16 cm TL
 
Hyporhamphus capensis
[Cape halfbeak]
No picture found
Western Atlantic
Max. Length 16.8 cm SL
 
Hyporhamphus collettei
[]

Photo by Seycek, O.

Indo-Pacific
Max. Length 38 cm SL
Hyporhamphus dussumieri (Valenciennes, 1847)

Photo by Seycek, O.
 
Hyporhamphus dussumieri
[Dussumier's halfbeak]
No picture found
Western Indian Ocean
 
Hyporhamphus erythrorinchus
[]

Photo by Biryukov, V.K.

Western Indian Ocean
Max. Length 37 cm TL
Hyporhamphus gamberur (Rüppell, 1837)

Photo by Biryukov, V.K.
 
Hyporhamphus gamberur
[Red Sea halfbeak]
No picture found
Northwest Pacific
Max. Length 16.1 cm SL
 
Hyporhamphus gernaerti
[]
No picture found
Eastern Pacific
Max. Length 17 cm SL
 
Hyporhamphus gilli
[Choelo halfbeak]

Photo by SeaFIC

Southwest Pacific
Max. Length 26 cm SL
Hyporhamphus ihi Phillipps, 1932

Photo by SeaFIC
 
Hyporhamphus ihi
[]

Photo by SFSA

Western Indian Ocean
Max. Length 18 cm TL
Hyporhamphus improvisus (Smith, 1933)

Photo by SFSA
 
Hyporhamphus improvisus
[Shortfin halfbeak]

Photo by Randall, J.E.

Northwest Pacific
Max. Length 15.1 cm SL
Hyporhamphus intermedius (Cantor, 1842)

Photo by Randall, J.E.
 
Hyporhamphus intermedius
[Asian pencil halfbeak]

Photo by Ratmuangkhwang, S.

Indo-West Pacific
Max. Length 35 cm TL
Hyporhamphus limbatus (Valenciennes, 1847)

Photo by Ratmuangkhwang, S.
 
Hyporhamphus limbatus
[Congaturi halfbeak]

Photo by NOAA\NMFS\Mississippi Laboratory

Western Atlantic
Max. Length 18 cm SL
Hyporhamphus meeki Banford & Collette, 1993

Photo by NOAA\NMFS\Mississippi Laboratory
 
Hyporhamphus meeki
[American halfbeak]

Photo by CSIRO

Eastern Indian Ocean
Max. Length 52 cm SL
Hyporhamphus melanochir (Valenciennes, 1847)

Photo by CSIRO
 
Hyporhamphus melanochir
[Southern garfish]

Photo by FAO

Western Pacific
Max. Length 17 cm SL
Hyporhamphus melanopterus Collette & Parin, 1978

Photo by FAO
 
Hyporhamphus melanopterus
[]

Photo by Granados-Dieseldorff, P. & M. Christensen

Central America
Max. Length 17.3 cm SL
Hyporhamphus mexicanus Álvarez, 1959

Photo by Granados-Dieseldorff, P. & M. Christensen
 
Hyporhamphus mexicanus
[Mexican halfbeak]

Photo by Robertson, R.

Eastern Pacific
Max. Length 22.9 cm SL
Hyporhamphus naos Banford & Collette, 2001

Photo by Robertson, R.
 
Hyporhamphus naos
[Pacific silverstripe halfbeak]

Photo by FAO

Indo-West Pacific
Max. Length 14.4 cm SL
Hyporhamphus neglectissimus Parin, Collette & Shcherbachev, 1980

Photo by FAO
 
Hyporhamphus neglectissimus
[Black-tipped garfish]

Photo by FAO

Western Central Pacific
Max. Length 16.5 cm SL
Hyporhamphus neglectus (Bleeker, 1866)

Photo by FAO
 
Hyporhamphus neglectus
[]

Photo by Randall, J.E.

Eastern Central Pacific
Max. Length 15.4 cm SL
Hyporhamphus pacificus (Steindachner, 1900)

Photo by Randall, J.E.
 
Hyporhamphus pacificus
[Acute halfbeak]
No picture found
Western Central Pacific
Max. Length 17.2 cm SL
 
Hyporhamphus paucirastris
[]

Photo by FAO

Eastern Atlantic
Max. Length 20 cm TL
Hyporhamphus picarti (Valenciennes, 1847)

Photo by FAO
 
Hyporhamphus picarti
[African halfbeak]

Photo by Hippocampus-Bildarchiv

Indo-West Pacific
Max. Length 31.2 cm SL
Hyporhamphus quoyi (Valenciennes, 1847)

Photo by Hippocampus-Bildarchiv
 
Hyporhamphus quoyi
[Quoy's garfish]
No picture found
Oceania
Max. Length 37 cm TL
 
Hyporhamphus regularis
[River garfish]
No picture found
Western Central Atlantic
Max. Length 18.6 cm SL
 
Hyporhamphus roberti hildebrandi
[Central American halfbeak]

Photo by Krumme, U.

Western Central Atlantic
Max. Length 32 cm TL
Hyporhamphus roberti roberti (Valenciennes, 1847)

Photo by Krumme, U.
 
Hyporhamphus roberti roberti
[Slender halfbeak]
No picture found
Eastern Pacific
Max. Length 15 cm TL
 
Hyporhamphus rosae
[California halfbeak]

Photo by Miyahara, H.

Northwest Pacific
Max. Length 40 cm TL
Hyporhamphus sajori (Temminck & Schlegel, 1846)

Photo by Miyahara, H.
 
Hyporhamphus sajori
[Japanese halfbeak]

Photo by Randall, J.E.

Western Indian Ocean.
Max. Length 25 cm TL
Hyporhamphus sindensis (Regan, 1905)

Photo by Randall, J.E.
 
Hyporhamphus sindensis
[Sind halfbeak]

Photo by Robertson, R.

Eastern Pacific
Max. Length 15 cm SL
Hyporhamphus snyderi Meek & Hildebrand, 1923

Photo by Robertson, R.
 
Hyporhamphus snyderi
[Skipper halfbeak]
No picture found
Asia
Max. Length 15.1 cm SL
 
Hyporhamphus taiwanensis
[]

Photo by Hermosa, Jr., G.V.

Indian Ocean
Max. Length 31.5 cm TL
Hyporhamphus unicuspis Collette & Parin, 1978

Photo by Hermosa, Jr., G.V.
 
Hyporhamphus unicuspis
[Simpletooth halfbeak]

Photo by Vaske Jr., T.

Western Atlantic
Max. Length 30 cm TL
Hyporhamphus unifasciatus (Ranzani, 1841)

Photo by Vaske Jr., T.
 
Hyporhamphus unifasciatus
[Common halfbeak]

Photo by A. Biju Kumar

Western Indian Ocean
Max. Length 15 cm TL
Hyporhamphus xanthopterus (Valenciennes, 1847)

Photo by A. Biju Kumar
 
Hyporhamphus xanthopterus
[Red-tipped halfbeak]
No picture found
Northwest Pacific
Max. Length 25 cm SL
 
Hyporhamphus yuri
[]

Photo by FAO

Western Central Pacific
Max. Length 22.7 cm SL
Melapedalion breve (Seale, 1910)

Photo by FAO
 
Melapedalion breve
[Philippine snubnose halfbeak]

Photo by Vaske Jr., T.

Indo-Pacific
Max. Length 18.5 cm SL
Oxyporhamphus micropterus (Valenciennes, 1847)

Photo by Vaske Jr., T.
 
Oxyporhamphus micropterus
[Bigwing halfbeak]

Photo by FAO

Eastern Atlantic
Max. Length 18 cm SL
Oxyporhamphus similis Bruun, 1935

Photo by FAO
 
Oxyporhamphus similis
[False halfbeak]

Photo by FAO

Western Indian Ocean
Max. Length 20 cm TL
Rhynchorhamphus arabicus Parin & Shcherbachev, 1972

Photo by FAO
 
Rhynchorhamphus arabicus
[Arabian flyingfish]

Photo by Randall, J.E.

Indo-West Pacific
Max. Length 31 cm
Rhynchorhamphus georgii (Valenciennes, 1847)

Photo by Randall, J.E.
 
Rhynchorhamphus georgii
[Long billed half beak]

Photo by FAO

Western Indian Ocean
Max. Length 35 cm TL
Rhynchorhamphus malabaricus Collette, 1976

Photo by FAO
 
Rhynchorhamphus malabaricus
[Malabar halfbeak]

Photo by FAO

Western Central Pacific
Max. Length 17.7 cm SL
Rhynchorhamphus naga Collette, 1976

Photo by FAO
 
Rhynchorhamphus naga
[]
62 Species of Family Hemiramphidae
(Halfbeaks)
Sort by: Species Length Year
1 of 1 Jump to:
Year Scientific Name English Name Distribution Max. Length (cm)
1866 Arrhamphus sclerolepis Northern snubnose garfish Indo-West Pacific 36 SL
1867 Arrhamphus sclerolepis krefftii Snubhose garfish Southwest Pacific 28
1882 Chriodorus atherinoides Hardhead halfbeak Western Atlantic 26 TL
1868 Euleptorhamphus velox Flying halfbeak Eastern Atlantic 61 TL
1823 Euleptorhamphus viridis Ribbon halfbeak Indo-Pacific 53 TL
1978 Hemiramphus archipelagicus Jumping halfbeak Indo-Pacific 34 TL
1821 Hemiramphus balao Balao halfbeak Western Atlantic 40 TL
1962 Hemiramphus bermudensis Bermuda halfbeak Western Central Atlantic 44 TL
1758 Hemiramphus brasiliensis Ballyhoo halfbeak Western Atlantic 55 TL
1922 Hemiramphus convexus Halfbeak Indo-West Pacific 23 TL
1839 Hemiramphus depauperatus Tropical half-beak fish Pacific Ocean 34.6 SL
1775 Hemiramphus far Black-barred halfbeak Indo-West Pacific 45 TL
1847 Hemiramphus lutkei Lutke's halfbeak Pacific Ocean 40 SL
1775 Hemiramphus marginatus Yellowtip halfbeak Western Indian Ocean 26 SL
1866 Hemiramphus robustus Three-by-two garfish Western Pacific 31.5 SL
1904 Hemiramphus saltator Longfin halfbeak Eastern Pacific 48 TL
1872 Hyporhamphus acutus Pacific halfbeak Pacific Ocean 30 TL
1866 Hyporhamphus affinis Tropical halfbeak Indo-Pacific 38 SL
1866 Hyporhamphus australis Eastern sea garfish Southwest Pacific 39.8 SL
1858 Hyporhamphus balinensis Balinese garfish Indo-Pacific 16.5 SL
1948 Hyporhamphus brederi South America 10 SL
1886 Hyporhamphus capensis Cape halfbeak Western Indian Ocean 16 TL
2010 Hyporhamphus collettei Western Atlantic 16.8 SL
1847 Hyporhamphus dussumieri Dussumier's halfbeak Indo-Pacific 38 SL
1821 Hyporhamphus erythrorinchus Western Indian Ocean
1837 Hyporhamphus gamberur Red Sea halfbeak Western Indian Ocean 37 TL
1847 Hyporhamphus gernaerti Northwest Pacific 16.1 SL
1923 Hyporhamphus gilli Choelo halfbeak Eastern Pacific 17 SL
1932 Hyporhamphus ihi Southwest Pacific 26 SL
1933 Hyporhamphus improvisus Shortfin halfbeak Western Indian Ocean 18 TL
1842 Hyporhamphus intermedius Asian pencil halfbeak Northwest Pacific 15.1 SL
1847 Hyporhamphus limbatus Congaturi halfbeak Indo-West Pacific 35 TL
1993 Hyporhamphus meeki American halfbeak Western Atlantic 18 SL
1847 Hyporhamphus melanochir Southern garfish Eastern Indian Ocean 52 SL
1978 Hyporhamphus melanopterus Western Pacific 17 SL
1959 Hyporhamphus mexicanus Mexican halfbeak Central America 17.3 SL
2001 Hyporhamphus naos Pacific silverstripe halfbeak Eastern Pacific 22.9 SL
1980 Hyporhamphus neglectissimus Black-tipped garfish Indo-West Pacific 14.4 SL
1866 Hyporhamphus neglectus Western Central Pacific 16.5 SL
1900 Hyporhamphus pacificus Acute halfbeak Eastern Central Pacific 15.4 SL
1978 Hyporhamphus paucirastris Western Central Pacific 17.2 SL
1847 Hyporhamphus picarti African halfbeak Eastern Atlantic 20 TL
1847 Hyporhamphus quoyi Quoy's garfish Indo-West Pacific 31.2 SL
1866 Hyporhamphus regularis River garfish Oceania 37 TL
1927 Hyporhamphus roberti hildebrandi Central American halfbeak Western Central Atlantic 18.6 SL
1847 Hyporhamphus roberti roberti Slender halfbeak Western Central Atlantic 32 TL
1880 Hyporhamphus rosae California halfbeak Eastern Pacific 15 TL
1846 Hyporhamphus sajori Japanese halfbeak Northwest Pacific 40 TL
1905 Hyporhamphus sindensis Sind halfbeak Western Indian Ocean. 25 TL
1923 Hyporhamphus snyderi Skipper halfbeak Eastern Pacific 15 SL
1986 Hyporhamphus taiwanensis Asia 15.1 SL
1978 Hyporhamphus unicuspis Simpletooth halfbeak Indian Ocean 31.5 TL
1841 Hyporhamphus unifasciatus Common halfbeak Western Atlantic 30 TL
1847 Hyporhamphus xanthopterus Red-tipped halfbeak Western Indian Ocean 15 TL
1978 Hyporhamphus yuri Northwest Pacific 25 SL
1910 Melapedalion breve Philippine snubnose halfbeak Western Central Pacific 22.7 SL
1847 Oxyporhamphus micropterus Bigwing halfbeak Indo-Pacific 18.5 SL
1935 Oxyporhamphus similis False halfbeak Eastern Atlantic 18 SL
1972 Rhynchorhamphus arabicus Arabian flyingfish Western Indian Ocean 20 TL
1847 Rhynchorhamphus georgii Long billed half beak Indo-West Pacific 31
1976 Rhynchorhamphus malabaricus Malabar halfbeak Western Indian Ocean 35 TL
1976 Rhynchorhamphus naga Western Central Pacific 17.7 SL



Other identification tools in FishBase


Quick Identification
Identification keys
Identification by morphometrics
Identification by pictures:
          If you already know the Family, go to Search FishBase, select Family and click on 'Identification by pictures' to display all available pictures in FishBase for the family.

          If you already know the Country, go to Search FishBase, select Country and click on 'Identification by pictures' to display all available pictures in FishBase for the country.

          If you already know the Ecosystem, go to Search FishBase, select Ecosystem and click on 'Identification by pictures' to display all available pictures in FishBase for the ecosystem.
cfm script by eagbayani, 30.11.04, ,  php script by cmilitante, 05/11/2010 ,  last modified by cmilitante, 14/03/2013