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FISH GUIDE · Sea

Swordfish: identification, habitat and fishing guide

Xiphias gladius

Swordfish is a large pelagic fish. In French Mediterranean waters, the order of 8 July 2025 prohibits recreational fishing for it, including catch and release, during the prescribed moratorium; this sheet proposes no targeted fishing.

Catalogue names : Swordfish. Forms and names may vary between habitats.

Editorial review : · This species guide is not permission to fish. Read the precautions below and check the current rules for your location before targeting a species. Some species or populations are protected.

Geographical distribution

Widely distributed in tropical and temperate Atlantic, Indian and Pacific waters, sometimes reaching cold waters; FishBase also lists the Mediterranean and Black Sea.

  • Documented presence : Atlantic Ocean
  • Documented presence : Indian Ocean
  • Documented presence : Pacific Ocean
  • Documented presence : Mediterranean Sea
  • Documented presence : Black Sea

Documented areas, not an exhaustive list. Presence in a region does not imply presence in every water body or permission to fish.

Distribution sources

Identification

Xiphias gladius has a long, flat, blade-like bill and no pelvic fins. Do not grasp the bill for identification or a photo; observation does not justify a dangerous approach.

Habitat

Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans, and the Mediterranean; mainly open water, sometimes near coasts. Rules for one area are not extended to other oceans.

Diet

Fish and invertebrates, particularly squid. The bill plays a role in capturing prey.

Behaviour

A highly migratory fish, it uses several water layers to feed. Its biological movements do not define a permitted fishing calendar.

Indicative biological size

300 cm common total length according to FishBase; this measurement is neither fork length nor a legal size limit.

Fishing context and precautions

In French Mediterranean waters, the moratorium also covers catch and release: no deliberate targeting is proposed. Practices described by NOAA or CNR create no French authorisation.

During an accidental encounter, favour keeping the fish in the water and a brief intervention prepared with competent people. CNR describes unhooking with a suitable tool or cutting the leader if removing the hook is difficult. Do not grab the bill, put hands in the gills or improvise bringing it onboard for a photograph. These precautions guarantee neither control of the fish in every sea condition nor its survival; accidental-catch reporting remains a separate obligation.

A distinctive feature

Muscular and thermal adaptations around the eyes enable it to hunt in cold deep water.

Sources and review

Each reference includes its access date. Overall editorial review: . Local conditions and regulations may change.

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