Family : Exocoetidae (Flyingfishes)
Order : Beloniformes  (needle fishes)
Class : Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes)
Fishbase Name : Sailfin flyingfish
Fish Name : Parexocoetus brachypterus
Max size : 20.0 cm TL (male/unsexed; Ref. 5217)
Environment : pelagic-neritic; oceanodromous ; depth range 0 - 20 m
Climate : subtropical
Global Importance : fisheries: minor commercial
Resilience: High, minimum population doubling time less than 15 months (Preliminary K or Fecundity.)Distribution : Indo-Pacific: widespread from East Africa, including the Red Sea (Ref. 26165) to southern Japan, Hawaii, the Marquesas, and Queensland (Australia); separate population in the eastern tropical Pacific (Bay of Panama). Western Atlantic: northeastern Florida, USA and the Bahamas to Brazil (Ref. 7251); common in Caribbean Sea and Lesser Antilles area; less common in the Gulf of Mexico, the Gulf Stream and the western Sargasso Sea (Ref. 3720). Eastern Atlantic: Guinea to Angola (Ref. 4498).
Diagnosis : Dorsal spines (total): 0-0; Dorsal soft rays (total): 12-14; Anal spines: 0-0; Anal soft rays: 12-14. Body iridescent greenish blue dorsally, silvery white ventrally; dorsal black except for base and posterior rays which are pale; pelvic fins greyish, other fins transparent (Ref. 2797).
Biology : Occurs in coastal waters (Ref. 9300), rare in the open ocean (Ref. 9839). Capable of leaping out of the water and gliding for considerable distances above the surface. 3-4 individuals aggregate during breeding (Ref. 47825). Carnivorous (Ref. 9137). Not important as food fish, but occasionally taken by fisheries
Threatened : Dangerous:  
Dangerous : harmless
Coordinator : Parin, Nikolay V.
Main Ref : Parin, N.V.. 1996. (Ref. 27313)

India country information
Common Names : പരവ, പാരവ, Parava
Status : native
Salinity : marine
Uses : no uses