longbill spearfish
Tetrapturus pfluegeri Robins & de Sylva, 1963
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
The longbill spearfish (Tetrapturus pfluegeri) is a species of marlin native to the Atlantic Ocean where it is found above the thermocline in open waters between 40°N and 35°S. This species can reach a length of 254 centimetres (100 in) FL and the maximum weight recorded is 58 kilograms (128 lb). It feeds on pelagic fishes such as needlefish, tuna, and jack, as well as squids. They spawn once a year. The specific name honours the Florida game fisherman and taxidermist Albert Pflueger Sr, who died in 1962.
Wikipedia contributors, Longbill spearfish; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T07:27:42.330162+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Tetrapturus pfluegeri Robins & de Sylva, 1963
- Name authority
- Robins & de Sylva, 1963
- Common name
- longbill spearfish
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Teleostei
- Order
- Carangiformes
- Family
- Istiophoridae
- Genus
- Tetrapturus
- Extinction status
- Not supplied by this source
Source habitat flags: Marine: yes · Freshwater: no · Terrestrial: no. These do not form a complete habitat description.
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- gigaclassActinopterygii
- superclassActinopteri
- classTeleostei
- orderCarangiformes
- familyIstiophoridae Rafinesque, 1815
- genusTetrapturus Rafinesque, 1810
- speciesTetrapturus pfluegeri Robins & de Sylva, 1963
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Tetrapturus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Mediterranean spearfishTetrapturus belone Rafinesque, 1810 | IstiophoridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| shortbill spearfishTetrapturus angustirostris Tanaka, 1915 | IstiophoridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| roundscale spearfishTetrapturus georgii Lowe, 1841 | IstiophoridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Tetrapterus pfluegeri Robins & de Sylva, 1963 Robins & de Sylva, 1963 | synonym |
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- Robins, C. R., & de Sylva, D. P. (1963). A new western Atlantic spearfish, Tetrapturus pfluegeri, with a redescription of the Mediterranean spearfish, Tetrapturus belone. Bulletin of Marine Science of the Gulf and Caribbean, 13 (1): 84–122. Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:55RY8. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.