Predatory fish

Predatory fish are <a href="/facts/Hypercarnivorous/vqhPS5Dl">hypercarnivorous</a> <a href="/facts/Fish/fln4gH9V">fish</a> that actively <a href="/facts/Predation/JEGdrX3f">prey</a> upon other fish or <a href="/facts/Aquatic_animal/tY7gyRWl">aquatic animals</a>, with examples including <a href="/facts/Shark/rh5Cotvx">shark</a>, <a href="/facts/Billfish/c9zRGIY3">billfish</a>, <a href="/facts/Barracuda/brUvJMbu">barracuda</a>, <a href="/facts/Alligator_gar/AAvPwPYC">alligator gar</a>, <a href="/facts/Tuna/7HtBI9EL">tuna</a>, <a href="/facts/Dolphinfish/7wUFlPjV">dolphinfish</a>, <a href="/facts/Walleye/tpjJEWpQ">walleye</a>, <a href="/facts/Perch/RmMxhGBa">perch</a> and <a href="/facts/Salmon/7kUsoqVN">salmon</a>. Some <a href="/facts/Omnivorous/b8zcsuJF">omnivorous</a> fish, such as the <a href="/facts/Red-bellied_piranha/rEu7HkrP">red-bellied piranha</a>, can occasionally also be predatory, although they are not strictly regarded as <a href="/facts/Obligate_carnivore/q6h6aSqe">obligately predatory</a> fish.
Populations of large predatory fish in the <a href="/facts/Ocean/8W8lYgjD">global oceans</a> were estimated to be about 10% of their <a href="/facts/Pre-industrial/hzEubtAQ">pre-industrial</a> levels by 2003, and they are most at risk of <a href="/facts/Extinction/24p5NP2q">extinction</a>; there was a disproportionate level of large predatory fish extinctions during the <a href="/facts/Cretaceous%E2%80%93Paleogene_extinction_event/HNyDuEcx">Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event</a> 66 million years ago. Creation of <a href="/facts/Marine_reserve/7wMNgIJC">marine reserves</a> has been found to restore populations of large predatory fish such as the <a href="/facts/Serranidae/mNQPKCFE">Serranidae</a> — <a href="/facts/Grouper/9A29GwXE">groupers</a> and <a href="/facts/Sea_bass/nWgUY2Uq">sea bass</a>.
Predatory fish switch between types of prey in response to variations in their abundance. Such changes in preference are disproportionate and are selected for as evolutionarily efficient. Predatory fish may become a <a href="/facts/Pest_(organism)/mXGHJ8s7">pest</a> if they are introduced into an <a href="/facts/Ecosystem/kVE8mSmR">ecosystem</a> in which they become a new <a href="/facts/Top_predator/dl0Jyy8Q">top predator</a>. An example, which has caused much trouble in <a href="/facts/Maryland/tVy9fC1n">Maryland</a> and <a href="/facts/Florida/cF245A3Q">Florida</a>, is the <a href="/facts/Snakehead_(fish)/EWM3oEq0">snakehead fish</a>.
Predatory fish such as <a href="/facts/Shark/rh5Cotvx">sharks</a>, <a href="/facts/Billfish/c9zRGIY3">billfish</a>, <a href="/facts/Alligator_gar/AAvPwPYC">alligator gar</a> and <a href="/facts/Tuna/7HtBI9EL">tuna</a> form a part of the <a href="/facts/Human_diet/GntDW6oo">human diet</a> and are targeted by <a href="/facts/Fisheries/TBvcT9bB">fisheries</a>, but they tend to concentrate significant quantities of <a href="/facts/Mercury_(element)/WlxfoHva">mercury</a> <a href="/facts/Mercury_in_fish/zQVsWBnC">in their bodies</a> because they are high in the <a href="/facts/Food_chain/mvDKQTGu">food chain</a>, especially as <a href="/facts/Apex_predators/dl0Jyy8Q">apex predators</a>, due to <a href="/facts/Biomagnification/Jw5whhaj">biomagnification</a>.
Predators are an important factor to consider in managing fisheries, and methods for doing so are available and used in some places.
Additionally, the existence of these predators also allows its prey to <a href="/facts/Evolution/Hj0qAaBk">evolve</a> <a href="/facts/Anti-predator_adaptation/nI5VgWco">countermeasures</a> through <a href="/facts/Natural_selection/JXTte6en">natural selection</a>. Consequently, the predators and prey will be locked in an <a href="/facts/Evolutionary_arms_race/7uUfRu88">evolutionary arms race</a>, each looking to gain the upper hand on the other. The presence of fish predators play a large role in the size, shape and swimming performance of the <a href="/facts/Lithobates_clamitans/Lb3KMu75">Lithobates clamitans</a> <a href="/facts/Tadpole/GFl3NasU">tadpoles</a>. The presence of these predators in their habitat causes the tadpoles to develop small bodies and large tail muscles in order to escape from their predators quicker and more efficiently.
Some predatory fish, such as <a href="/facts/Lamnidae/PQx359fh">lamnid</a> sharks, billfishes, tuna, <a href="/facts/Opah/PfASNrrp">opah</a> and <a href="/facts/Butterfly_kingfish/hxWXkka0">butterfly kingfish</a>, have the ability for cranial endothermy, i.e., the ability to elevate <a href="/facts/Eye/h3lbYU55">eye</a> and <a href="/facts/Brain/EKla9NkJ">brain</a> temperatures, which helps with vision and neural function during ambient temperature changes.

Predatory fish open-in-new

Predatory fish