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barracuda, slender, elongated fish of tropical seas. Barracudas have long snouts and projecting lower jaws armed with large, sharp-edged teeth. They are ferocious, striking at anything that gleams, and are considered excellent game fishes. The largest of the group, the great barracuda, averages 5 ft (1.5 m) in length but may reach 10 ft (3 m); it is dangerous to swimmers wearing shiny objects. Other species are the Pacific barracuda (4 ft/1.2 m long) and the smaller Northern barracuda, which is not dangerous. Barracudas are classified in the phylum Chordata, subphylum Vertebrata, class Osteichthyes, order Sphyraenoidei, family Sphyraenidae.
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