Barbel flyingfish
Exocoetus monocirrhus
Valid name (FishBase; confirmed in Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes and WoRMS, October 2026).
- English
- Barbel flyingfish
- Scientific
- Exocoetus monocirrhus
- Dhivehi
- ނަރުވާ ފުޅަނގިNaruvaa fuihangi
- Maximum size
- Up to about 20 cm (standard length) (FishBase); MRS 1997 gives max. 20 cm
- Depth and habitat
- Open ocean, near the surface and in mid-water, recorded from 0 to 20 m
- IUCN status
- NE · Not EvaluatedNot Evaluated (NE)
Description
A small two-winged flyingfish, dark blue above and silvery white below, with long pectoral fins and a single barbel under the chin in young fish. It escapes predators such as tunas and dolphinfish by leaping and gliding above the surface.
In the Maldives
Dhivehi name naruvaa fuihangi (MRS 1997), a name coined in MRS.
Sources
- fishbase.se /summary/Exocoetus-monocirrhus.html
- fao.org /4/AD471E/AD471E00.htm
- dv.wikipedia.org /wiki/ނަރުވާ_ފުޅަނގި
- commons.wikimedia.org /wiki/File:Exocoetus_monocirrhus.jpg
Dhivehi name source: M.R.S. (1997) Fishes of the Maldives (FAO/BOBP MAG/21) gives 'Naruvaa fuihangi' (Latin form). Thaana from the Dhivehi Wikipedia article 'ނަރުވާ ފުޅަނގި' (derived from the MRS 1997 Dhivehi edition); it matches the Latin form. FLAG: the source states no traditional name was recorded and this descriptive name was coined for the book; it is not an established fishermen's name.