balao

Hemiramphus balao

Fish Reaching Forty Centimeters in the Niger Basin

Tropical
Regional distribution
Atlantic Ocean
Africa
Central America and the Caribbean
North America
South America
Elongated
Medium
Tropical fish

The balao halfbeak (Hemiramphus balao), occasionally called the balao for short, is an ocean-going species of fish in the family Hemiramphidae. It was first described by French naturalist Charles Alexandre Lesueur in 1821. They are used as cut bait and for trolling purposes by saltwater sportsmen.

Class: Teleosts
Order: Needlefishes, Halfbeaks, and Allies
Family: Hemiramphidae
Genus: Hemiramphus
Maximum length: 40 cm
Body shape: elongated
Distribution: Western Atlantic: New York, USA and northern Gulf of Mexico to Sao Paulo, Brazil (Ref. 7251 ); including the Caribbean Sea (Ref. 3723 ). Eastern Atlantic: from Morocco to the Canary Islands (Ref. 57227 ) and in the Gulf of Guinea from Victoria, Nigeria to south to Luanda, Angola (Ref. 4497 ). Reported from Côte d'Ivoire (Ref. 28587 , 57227 ).
Conservation status: LCLeast Concern

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