Swordfish

Xiphias gladius

Fish
IUCN: Near threatened

Usual depth14–216 m
Water temperature8–29 °C
Best monthsJuly, August, and September
How commonCommon

About this species

The swordfish, also known as the broadbill in some countries, are large, highly migratory predatory fish characterized by a long, flat, sword-like, pointed bill. They are the sole member of the family Xiphiidae. They are a popular sport fish of the billfish category. Swordfish are elongated, round-bodied, and lose all teeth and scales by adulthood. These fish are found widely in tropical and temperate parts of the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans, and can typically be found from near the surface to a depth of 550 m (1,800 ft), and exceptionally up to depths of 2,878 m (9,442 ft). They commonly reach 3 m (10 ft) in length, and the maximum reported is 4.55 m in length and 650 kg (1,430 lb) in weight.

Text from the Wikipedia article “Swordfish”, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the article

Where and when

Where it has been recorded

Worldwide

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Best months

Worldwide (open data)

January: 1,513 records
February: 1,414 records
March: 1,447 records
April: 1,335 records
May: 1,588 records
June: 1,544 records
July: 1,673 records
August: 1,748 records
September: 1,677 records
October: 1,637 records
November: 1,214 records
December: 1,090 records

Depth and water temperature

Depth

Mostly recorded at 14–216 m · Deepest record: 1,700 m

0–10 m: 677 records
10–20 m: 2,561 records
20–30 m: 3,887 records
30–40 m: 1,993 records
40–50 m: 1,051 records
50–60 m: 208 records
60–70 m: 692 records
70–80 m: 583 records
80–90 m: 115 records
90–100 m: 458 records
100–110 m: 438 records
110+ m: 5,163 records

Water temperature

Recorded in surface water of 8–29 °C

6–8 °C: 2 records
8–10 °C: 6 records
10–12 °C: 7 records
12–14 °C: 13 records
14–16 °C: 37 records
16–18 °C: 66 records
18–20 °C: 28 records
20–22 °C: 13 records
22–24 °C: 18 records
24–26 °C: 121 records
26–28 °C: 295 records
28–30 °C: 20 records

Names and classification

English: Swordfish, Swordfish sucker, Atlantic Swordfish, Broadbill, Broadbill Swordfish, Pirapucu, Shutome, swordfish, Sword fish, swordfish sucker

Names in 7 more languages

German: Schwertfisch
Spanish: Aja para, Albacora, Chichi spada, Emperador, Espada, Espadon, Espardarte, pez espada, Pez espada
French: espadon, Espadon, Espadron, Poisson épée, Poisson Porte-épée
Japanese: Dakuda, Medara, Meka, Mekajiki, メカジキ
Korean: 황새치
Thai: ปลากระโทงแทงดาบ
Simplified Chinese: 劍旗魚

Other scientific names: Phaethonichthys tuberculatus, Tetrapterus imperator, Xiphasia gladius, Xiphias estara, Xiphias imperator, Xiphias rondeletii, Xiphias rondeletti, Xiphias thermaicus, Xyphias gladius

Sources and credits

Names and taxonomy: WoRMS (CC BY 4.0) and the GBIF Backbone (CC BY 4.0). Photos: iNaturalist observers, each under the licence shown (CC0, CC BY or CC BY-SA).

Depth, temperature, months and maps: records from OBIS and GBIF under CC0 or CC BY.
Descriptions: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA, each linked to its article.
Conservation status as published by GBIF (IUCN Red List).
148,117 open-data records from 1758 to 2025.

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