Cheilopogon nigricans, the blacksail flyingfish, also known as African flyingfish, or leaping flyingfish, is a flying fish in the family Exocoetidae. It is an oceanodromous, plankton-eating marine fish which has commercial value.

Oviparous

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Appearance

Like many other flyingfishes, the blacksail flyingfish has a cylindrical body and large pectoral and pelvic fins that it uses for gliding flight. Most adults are roughly 28 cm long and are generally dark iridescent blue above, silvery white below. Pectoral fins are black and with a yellowish stripe in the middle. Pelvic fins have prominent black spot, which can clearly identify the species. Juveniles are different from the adults by the presence of dark bars on body. It has 13 to 15 dorsal soft rays and 8 to 11 anal soft rays.

Distribution

Geography

Continents

Antarctica, North America, South America, Asia, Africa, Oceania

Subcontinents

Caribbean Islands, East Asia, Central America, Southeast Asia, South Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa, Western Asia, Melanesia, Micronesia

Countries

Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Cuba, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Jamaica, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago, Japan, Taiwan, Belize, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, United States, Australia, Papua New Guinea, Federated States of Micronesia, Palau, Solomon Islands, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Maldives, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Brazil, Colombia, Guyana, Suriname, Venezuela, Equatorial Guinea, Seychelles, Mauritius, South Africa, Angola, Benin, Cape Verde, Cameroon, Comoros, Congo, DR Congo, Cote d'Ivoire, Djibouti, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Liberia, Madagascar, Mauritania, Mozambique, Nigeria, Sao Tomé and Principe, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Tanzania, Togo, Yemen, Iran, Oman, Pakistan, United Arab Emirates, New Zealand, Ireland, Ecuador, China

Oceans

Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean, Indian ocean

Seas

Tasman Sea, Sulu Sea, South China Sea, Philippine Sea, Laccadive Sea, Gulf of Guinea, Coral Sea, Celebes Sea, Arabian Sea

Islands

Andaman Island, Mozambique Channel Island, Nicobar Island, Caribbean Islands

Biogeographical realms

Antarctic, Neotropical, Palearctic, Nearctic, Australasian, Indomalayan, Oceanian, Afrotropical

The blacksail flyingfish is a widely spread fish that can be found tropical water of Indian, West Pacific and parts of Atlantic Oceans. It can be seen along Brazil, South Africa, Madagascar, Sri Lanka, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sumatra, Indonesia, Japan, Taiwan, Fiji, Borneo, and Australia.