World Record Pacific Bonefish from Honolulu, Hawaii

Triana holds seven all tackle and line class records for Pacific bones, including one 10-pounder.

“Pacific bonefish on ultra light tackle in Hawaii has been the most challenging record to break,” notes Triana. “It’s difficult to find a Pacific bonefish large enough to eclipse an existing record, because those
larger specimens are few and far between, and spook so easily.”  

World Record Yelloweye Rockfish from Seward, Alaska

Triana has captured 19 IGFA records in this small town two and a half hours south of Anchorage. Among the record-breaking species: yelloweye rockfish and Pacific cod.

“These species are some of the oldest fish on the planet, reaching 80 to 100 years old,” says Triana. “Having the opportunity to fish for large specimens gives you multiple chances to encounter that perfect fish.”

World Record Grass Carp in Miami, Florida

Triana’s hometown has provided him access to myriad oddball species including hornet tilapia, Orinoco sailfin catfish, Oscar, and a record-breaking 48-pound, 12-ounce grass carp caught in the suburb of Palmetto Bay.

“Grass carp were introduced into the South Florida canal systems decades ago to control the rapid growth of hydrilla weed that completely choked the waterways,” Triana explains. “They are the largest member of the minnow family, and grow to massive proportions.”

World Record Andalusian Barbel from Portugal

As Triana does for all his travels, including family trips, he researches species that are unique to the area. The Andalusian barbel record came in the summer of 2022 during a family vacation to Portugal, where they spent a good chunk of their time in the southern region of Algarve.

“The barbel is a common and popular freshwater game fish in the United Kingdom and throughout Europe,” Triana says. “They belong to the carp family, and can be found in river systems and reservoirs.”  

World Record Talang Queenfish from Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Before it was the megalopolis of today, Dubai was a fishing village, and Triana’s research revealed that Talang queenfish is a popular game fish in the Persian Gulf. Triana made the trip with his family in March 2022.

“I rigged a Clouser fly with 6-pound tippet, and waited for the chance to cast,” he says. “Like a light switch, schools of talang queenfish appeared all around the boat chasing small minnows. A queenfish attacked the fly. It fights down and dirty like a jack crevalle, but jumps like a tarpon. After multiple loops around the boat, I landed the fish.”

World Record Black Durgon from Varadero, Cuba

Triana wanted to explore the untapped reef fishery, but Cuba only allowed government-run fishing vessels that troll outside the reef line.

“We anchored in the clearest water I’ve ever seen, and I break out my light spinning rods with 6-pound-test line, and diced-up lobster for bait,” Triana recalls. “I can see the school of black durgon on the bottom.” He caught a 2-pound fish, topping the existing record of 1 pound, 14 ounces.

World Record Tiger Trout in Salt River, Wyoming

Call it world record by bycatch. While fly fishing along the banks of the Salt River in search of brown trout, Triana caught a baby tiger trout. He quickly made his way back to his car to reference the IGFA yearbook he always travels with to check the tiger trout records.

“I saw there was only a 2-pound fish as the existing record on 6-pound-test line class. I quickly put together my 6-pound spinning outfit and began casting a fly. It wasn’t too long before caught another tiger trout in the same exact area.” Except this time, it was a much larger specimen.

World Record Collared Large-Eye Bream from the Great Barrier Reef

Triana traveled to Australia in 2001 hoping to catch a black marlin. After the liveaboard anchored up one evening, “I rigged up one of my light tackle rods and began bottom fishing, catching a multitude of species,” Triana recalls. “One of them was a very big collared large-eye bream. I kept it on ice until I had a chance to do some research the next day.” It turned out he had caught an IGFA world record.

The post One Man’s Hunt for Record Fish appeared first on Sport Fishing Mag.

The best Florida saltwater anglers know how to follow the fish. A hotspot one day might be barren the next when fish are on the move. Migratory fish urges set in once autumn arrives, and depending on the Florida species, cooling waters can trigger fish to scatter along the coast, or even offshore. Both resident and highly migratory species are involved. 

The home bodies — such as spotted seatrout, redfish and snook — don’t go far. Popular beach runners such as pompano, Spanish mackerel and bluefish are the long-range travelers that come from northern waters. They follow their preferred water temperatures into Florida when fall arrives. Still, surf casters can tell you these three species are available year-round in Florida waters in limited numbers. 

Water temperature is the main driver for all of the aforementioned fish movement. However, forage availability (which is tied to not only water temperature, but to salinity and habitat changes) also has a bearing on when fish move and where they go. 

When Gamefish Move from Open Waters to Backwaters

Years ago, I learned how seasonal changes affect fish in the Ten Thousand Islands area on Florida’s Gulf Coast. I quickly learned enough of the territory to know the difference between the “inside” and the “outside” waters. Inside was from a line roughly halfway between the open Gulf of Mexico and the mainland creeks that lead deep into the Everglades’ freshwaters. Outside meant from that same point out to the open Gulf. 

My favorite spring and summertime grass flats on the Gulf side became devoid of the specks by late December once cold fronts came through twice a week. I lucked into tight schools of them around oyster bars of the inside bays. Severe January cold snaps forced them into the salty mangrove-lined creeks and rivers of the mainland. 

The same was true about red drum and snook. During September and October, the two species were commonplace around the outside islands and oyster bars on the edge of the Gulf. But when it cooled down, they moved deep into the backcountry. And they did not come out until April, unless winter was mild. Those migrations are very short, but unmistakable.  

Moving from Flats to Offshore Waters

Florida Bay might have the best summertime inshore mangrove snapper fishery in the state, mostly over grass in 5 to 8 feet of water. It peaks in late summer, but by November, most of the fish of legal size move out to deeper water, on both the Gulf and the nearshore Atlantic reefs off the Keys. The void they leave is quickly filled by hordes of Spanish mackerel, cobia and pompano that originate in Panhandle waters. Those fish stay until May, before heading north, and the snapper return. 

Gamefish Head South for the Winter

Pompano — officially Florida pompano — are sensitive to water temperature fluctuations. I chase them both in the surf with bait and surf gear and with fly rods when they enter the Indian River Lagoon. By January, chances are the water temperatures from Hobe Sound north may fall below 63 degrees F, and that triggers them to move south en masse.

Though it’s been on the mild side in recent years, I recall a handful of seasons when the pomps vanished from their normal spots, so I scouted waters as far south as West Palm Beach. The beaches there were swarming with pompano. A 5-degree water temperature difference was the key. 

Biscayne Bay bonefish are a perfect example of a fish on the move. Autumn water temperatures are ideal, so October and November see lots of hungry fish on the flats — both on the mainland and oceanside. But a cold December through February sends them to primarily the Atlantic oceanside flats, or into deeper water such as nearshore patch reefs. 

Inside Tip: Bonefish are known to “huddle up” in schools of hundreds and head south to the Keys to find the warmest water possible. 

Fish Ranges Expanding Due to Climate Change? 

Florida anglers are continually reporting catches of saltwater species farther north of their typical range, and just recently, multiple tarpon were spotted by anglers as far north as Maryland’s northern Chesapeake Bay. An occasional sighting has happened over the years, but this summer’s numbers are impressive. Warming Atlantic waters allow for this, and many biologists and anglers think climate change is the trigger. This is strictly migratory behavior — the tarpon must head back south as winter approaches, or they perish. 

Florida snook are creeping northward into the Florida Big Bend. On the Gulf coast, snook typically ranged to Tarpon Springs, but by 2020 they were encountered in the Suwannee River, 80 miles to the north. Since that time, state wildlife researchers are hearing reports of the popular linesiders in the Florida Panhandle. The term “neo-native” applies to snook, and any fish species native to a particular region, but is expanding to nearby regions because of climate shifts, such as fewer hard freezes in winter. 

Like tarpon, snook can’t withstand prolonged cold weather. In fact, snook typically die in water less than 50 degrees after more than a few days. You have to wonder if any snook in the Florida Panhandle have actually survived a winter? There was a small snook kill in 2018 around Crystal River, where snook were not present years ago. Three nights of freezing weather killed them. 

And it’s no secret that the peacock bass, a tropical fish first released in South Florida canals and lakes to control other invasive species, are now flourishing in waterways as far north as Boynton Beach. The original northern range was northern Palm Beach County, with the epicenter of the population being Dade and Broward counties on the east coast. Gulf side, it was mostly Everglades waters, and Collier and Lee counties. 

Peacock bass do not tolerate water temperatures under 60 degrees, though they have survived cold snaps in some of the deeper canals. Considering a recent string of warm winters, without hard freezes south of Orlando, it’s anyone’s guess how far peacock bass will push north.

The post Temps Trigger Migratory Fish Movements appeared first on Sport Fishing Mag.

That the ocean’s most advanced and highly developed swimming machines are also among the most popular of game fishes with the world’s saltwater angling enthusiasts is hardly a coincidence. As anglers, we have tremendous respect for the spirited fighting qualities of tunas — difficult to release, should we wish to, because they truly will fight their hearts out when hooked. So what is it that makes tunas the über-fish of our oceans? The more we learn about our favorite game fish, the more fascinating they are.

Are Mackerels Tuna? What Are True Tunas?

Tunas are part of the family Scombridae, which also includes mackerels, large and small. But there are tunas, and then there are, well, “true tunas.” Two groups (sometimes known as “tribes”) dominate the tuna clan. One is Thunnini, which is the group considered true tunas, characterized by two separate dorsal fins and a relatively thick body. The 15 species of Thunnini are albacore, bigeye, black skipjack, blackfin, bluefin (three species: Atlantic, Pacific, southern), bullet, frigate, kawakawa, little tunny, longtail, skipjack, slender and yellowfin.

The other tribe is Sardini; these tunas — the dogtooth tuna and several species of smaller true bonitos — are somewhat more mackerel-like (notably with a more elongated body and a row of sharp, conical teeth).

How do Tuna Swim so Fast and Hard?

Sport fishermen know that when they hook a large tuna, they’re in for a long, drawn-out, relentless battle. Nothing characterizes tunas more than their powerful, tireless swimming. In fact, these fish have no choice but to swim endlessly: As explained more thoroughly below, they’re ram ventilators, meaning forward motion is required as they move with mouth open to force water past their gills.

Most fishes, such as groupers, snappers and jacks, can remain motionless and respire by opening and closing their mouths to push water through their gills. Tunas have lost the ability to do that (even if they could, such small pushes of water wouldn’t offer their large gills the tremendous flow they require to supply their systems with oxygen). A suitable motto for tunas, then, is “swim or die.”

How tunas have evolved to move efficiently through the water is reflected in their design, both externally and internally. Of their fusiform body shape (tapering fore and aft), Sport Fishing Fish Facts expert Ben Diggles says, “Their almost-perfect hydrodynamic shape minimizes drag with a very low drag coefficient,” optimizing efficient swimming both at cruise and burst.

And these torpedoes are perfectly streamlined, their larger fins fitting perfectly into grooves so no part of these fins protrudes above the body surface. They lack the convex eyes of most fish; rather, a membrane covering tuna eyes remains flush with their heads, maintaining a surface with minimal drag. Keels and finlets in front of the tail provide stability and help reduce the turbulence in the water ahead of the tail.

Unlike most fishes with broad, flexible tails that bend to scoop water to move a fish forward, tunas derive tremendous thrust with thin, hard, lunate (moon-shaped) tails that beat constantly, capable of 10 to 12 or more beats per second. That relentless thrust accounts for the unstoppable runs that tuna make repeatedly when hooked.

As with other fast-swimming fishes, a primary limitation on top speed for tunas is cavitation, which at high speeds can slow them and even damage fins. (Cavitation is caused when negative pressure forms tiny air bubbles, which then collapse and form shock waves. Cavitation can damage the metal in propellers — and cause lesions in the fins of fish that swim “too fast,” such as tunas.)

Why Is a Tuna’s Meat Red?

While many of the characteristics that account for the tuna’s remarkable swimming ability are visible externally, some of the most astonishing adaptations are internal.

Certainly, that includes their extensive aerobic red muscle. Many fishes are ambush predators, relying on bursts of speed to feed but swimming slowly otherwise. Their bodies are mostly filled with white muscle — glycolytic fibers used in infrequent burst swimming. Tunas employ far more red muscle; their oxidative fibers prove ideal for long-haul, constant swimming without fatigue. Also, red muscle is full of myoglobin, which stores oxygen in the muscle tissues, for use as needed.

With so much red muscle demanding that much more oxygen, tunas’ gills — their organs for respiration, of course — are huge. For example, a tuna has seven to nine times more gill area for its size compared to relatively sedentary trout. And, not surprisingly, you’ve gotta have heart: Moving great amounts of oxygenated blood through their bodies requires tunas to have far larger hearts than most fish. Not only that, but another way tunas have advanced beyond most fishes — which have a constant heart rate — is their ability, like mammals, to vary their heart rate, maximizing efficiency.

Can Tuna Warm Their Bodies?

Arguably the most striking and sophisticated adaptation we can’t see — but science has revealed — is the ability of larger true tunas to heat certain areas of their bodies. They do this through what are known as the retia mirabilia (“wonderful net”), an ingenious counter-current vascular heat-exchange system. Basically, parallel veins and arteries exchange blood, allowing tunas to conserve metabolic heat via what is called regional endothermy, warming their red muscle tissue, brain, eyes and viscera well above ambient water temperatures.

This regional endothermy gives them the same metabolic advantage that Homo sapiens and other mammals enjoy. In fact, tunas couldn’t sustain the swim-or-die lifestyle nor be the relentless eating machines they are without that higher metabolic rate, allowing them to swim longer and faster, their brains and eyes to function better in cold water, and their viscera to digest more quickly and efficiently.

Further demonstrating the brilliance of their plumbing, larger tunas can shed excess heat from their bodies during periods of intense feeding (in essence, while doing wind sprints) via their retia mirabilia, which uses blood from gills cooled by ambient water to reduce body heat. This system also undoubtedly comes into play as one factor in the amazing endurance that hooked tunas show to resist their capture.

How Deep do Tuna Swim?

Much of the evolutionary success of tunas derives from their ability to transition from warm to cool waters in a way that most — less advanced, cold-blooded — fishes can’t manage.

Satellite tagging has revealed much about the feeding behavior and movements of large tunas, including their tendency to dive into deep, cold water. Scientists have documented that yellowfin feed at times in waters much deeper than once believed, but the bigeye is a champ in the deep-dive category, often feeding in waters exceeding 1,500 feet — and diving to more than 5,000 feet.

Apparently, these daytime deep divers are taking advantage of what’s known as the deep-scattering layer, a concentration of biomass (plankton and larger organisms) typically settling by day into 1,500 to 2,000 feet of water (which rises to or near the surface nightly). This is the same DSL in which swordfish feed during the day. Perhaps not so surprisingly, daytime swordy anglers have been hooking some large tuna while dropping deep.

The other abyss-loving tuna is the bluefin. What large yellowfin, bigeye and bluefin have in common that enables them to feed at great depths is body mass. Juveniles and smaller species of tuna, lacking that, lose body heat too rapidly to allow them to leave near-surface waters for long.

Heat is lost in the frigid waters at depth, but rewarming occurs when tunas move up into warmer waters — where heating occurs at 100 to 1,000 times the rate that it’s lost. (This may be facilitated with blood bypassing lateral heat exchangers, so blood warmed and oxygenated in the gills by ambient, warmer waters enters the red muscle directly.)

What large tunas have in common that encourages them to feed so deep is simply an abundance of food in these cold but productive waters.

How Far do Tuna Travel?

The same motivation to find more and more food accounts for far-ranging horizontal movements as well as vertical dives into colder waters. So, for example, in the North Atlantic, the world’s largest giant bluefin are caught at the most northerly edges of the species’ range — the Canadian Maritimes — and in the South Pacific, the largest giants come from the most southern part of the southern bluefin’s range — off New Zealand’s South Island. In both instances, only the great body mass of giants provides enough thermal inertia — a small enough ratio of surface area to volume to prevent rapid cooling — so they can take advantage of vast schools of prey.

Large tunas are truly superfish, at the zenith of evolutionary design and success as predators among the ocean’s fishes. Little wonder they’re among the very most popular targets worldwide among saltwater recreational fishermen. The more we as anglers understand these magnificent fish, the more we can appreciate the opportunity to fish for and catch them.

Is Disaster Imminent for Tunas?

Tunas occasionally make it into mainstream news, and when they do, the circumstances (for continued survival of the species) usually sound pretty dire. However, a scientist at the University of Washington, found that just 30 percent of commercial tuna stocks had an abundance below that which would produce maximum sustainable yield.

Recently, Atlantic bluefin tuna have made a noticeable comeback. And anglers are taking advantage of it. In particular, many Northeast area anglers have spent the summer months targeting tuna of all sizes, both inshore and far offshore.“ The abundance of tunas and their relatives has declined from pre-industrial levels, but in general, they are at sustainable levels,” said Maite Pons, Ph.D..

The post Common Questions About Tuna appeared first on Sport Fishing Mag.

shark release

All those teeth and bad reputation notwithstanding, some sharks aren’t all that tough. In fact, in terms of how they hold up after a battle at the end of a line, some are downright wimps. Studies on post-release survival rates of sharks provide the hard data.

Scientists fought and caught five species of sharks on hook and line using standardized techniques for comparison purposes. While the authors note limitations of this initial study, calling for further research, they did form some interesting conclusions with applicability to sport fishermen.

It seems that the five species reacted differently to the stress of fighting on a line. From this study, tiger sharks qualify as tough customers, with nearly 100 percent of those tracked up to four weeks after release doing just fine. The study lists lemon sharks as being nearly as hardy, based on lactic acid levels and other parameters measured, since post-release survival studies were not conducted on lemons.

Bull sharks fared pretty well after release, with 74 percent surviving. Somewhat less hardy were blacktip sharks. But the most susceptible of all to the rigors of a long struggle when hooked were hammerheads, with more than half suffering mortality during the weeks after their release.

Post Release Fishing Mortality

This makes me wonder what sort of differences in post-release mortality there might be among other closely related game fishes. Anyone who fishes for redfish and trout knows that reds can stand a bit of quick handling before release, but even minimal handling can leave a seatrout too weak to swim. I know that among deepwater rockfishes along the Pacific Coast, some species are too barotraumatized (“blown up”) to swim back down if pulled from 50 or 60 feet of water, while other species can be taken from 100 to 150 feet or so and usually swim back down with no trouble.

The Atlantic’s popular black sea bass readily show signs of barotrauma, such as the stomach being everted from the mouth thanks to expanded swim-bladder gases. Anglers probably wonder — as did scientists — how many of these “inflated” fish could survive, even those that managed to swim down.

Lots of anglers release fish pretty regularly. Clearly, we want them to survive. The more we know about how species react, the more successful we can be at minimizing release mortality. Information like that cited above can help us. So will a visit to returnemright.org, a site dedicated to helping anglers follow known best practices in releasing fish.

The post Do Sharks Die After Release? appeared first on Sport Fishing Mag.

Do you have a photograph of a fish you can’t identify? If so, we’re up for the challenge, and would welcome the opportunity to share your photo and its ID with an international audience of enthusiasts. (Whether published or not, we will personally respond to every inquiry.) Email your jpgs, as large/hi-res as possible, to: fishfacts@sportfishingmag.com.

While fishing from the shore at St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, Dom Porcelli caught two sunfish-shaped fish that he identified as hamlets, though he wasn’t certain, and hoped Fish Facts could confirm.

Dom: You have it right. Both of these are hamlets, sea bass that are closely related to groupers, found in Florida, the Caribbean and beyond in the Western Atlantic. Typical of groupers, hamlets are aggressive predators, so anglers catch the small fish on baited hooks or small lures in shallow coral waters (to at least 150 feet).

Some experts believe there is one species with many different color shades. But other experts cite 13 different species, which means the darker fish Dom caught is a black hamlet (Hypoplectrus negre) and the lighter one a butter hamlet (H. unicolor). The black saddle ahead of its tail makes I.D. of butter hamlet easy.

The post Fish Facts: Little Caribbean Sea Bass appeared first on Sport Fishing Mag.

Jack Crevalle

This fast and robust fighter will make you work for it from hook-up to finish—a beautiful fish that can grow over 3 feet in length.

Atlantic Bonito

The mighty mini tuna packs plenty of drag-pulling action into the game. Plus, they are pretty good in the pan, too.

Red Drum

You can find this one inshore or offshore, in the surf, or off a pier. But in the wash might just be my favorite place to tangle with these great fighters.

Spanish Mackerel

This underrated fish puts up a good fight the whole time, and you just might get some jumping acrobatics, too. Bring a cooler, as they are pretty good eating.

Florida Pompano

There’s a reason the majority of us Florida surf anglers target them! They put up a decent fight, but they really excel in the kitchen, with plenty of meat per fish.

The post Top Gamefish Species in the Surf appeared first on Sport Fishing Mag.

Is permit on a self-tied fly on your list? Dream higher, man. Max out the credit card and head for the Seychelles. That’s where you’ve got the best shot at the ugliest, most challenging quarry in the shallows: a bumpie (bumphead parrotfish).

With a set of chompers that put sheepies to shame, these coral-eating behemoths can live 40 years and weigh triple digits. But boy, are they finicky. Wade quietly ahead of a school, lead ’em 50 yards, and drop an orange or tan crab fly in their path. Don’t even think about moving it; let the monster muncher do the work. At the slightest movement, strip-set and hang on. Want a goal to shoot for? Try Mark Weeks’ IGFA world record, set on the Providence Atoll in November 2019. Guide Brendan Becker put him on a 102-pound, 3-ounce butt-ugly bumpie, with a face only a crazed fly-rodder would love.

The post Fish Facts: All Hail the Bumpie appeared first on Sport Fishing Mag.

Do you have a photograph of a fish you can’t identify? If so, we’re up for the challenge, and would welcome the opportunity to share your photo and its ID with an international audience of enthusiasts. (Whether published or not, we will personally respond to every inquiry.) Email your jpgs, as large/hi-res as possible, to: fishfacts@sportfishingmag.com.

The Pacific Northwest is home to literally dozens of species of rockfishes (genus Sebastes; in no way related to striped bass of the Atlantic locally known as “rockfish”). Identification can be tough. Color is the most common indicator, but it’s not always reliable, and anglers are often left scratching their heads as to what species they’ve caught.

So it was when angler Chris Bushman in Ketchikan, Alaska, jigged up this rockfish from about 130 feet of water recently. Even the guide was unsure of the species’ identity. “All of the other area guides were perplexed as well,” Bushman writes. “It would be nice to know exactly what I caught and released.”

In fact, Chris, that’s a yelloweye rockfish, Sebastes ruberrimus. If guides were uncertain, that’s understandable, since yelloweye (widely in Alaska waters referred to as “red snapper”) are generally a brilliant orange-red as adults. But juveniles — and yours appears to be a juvie — are a darker red with two bright white stripes down each side. This fish has a thin stripe but not nearly as wide and prominent as usual. And yours has a great deal of black pigment all over, which is unusual. Fish Facts checked with our northern Pacific expert, Dr. Milton Love, who confirmed this coloration is rare, though in one area it occurs with some regularity.

A bit of intel on the species: Yelloweye (Alaska to California) are very long-lived and slow-growing. NOAA lists them as living up to 150 years. They’re very territorial, often spending their adult lives in one rocky area (usually in 200 to at least 1,200 feet of water). That and their slow growth make them exceptionally vulnerable to overfishing. As a result, it is illegal to possess or fish for (once abundant) yelloweye off California, Oregon and areas of Alaska.

Unfortunately the release of these deepwater, pressure-sensitive fish is challenging, though it’s doable with a good descending device. As you might guess, yelloweye is superb eating. It’s been long coveted for that quality and for the brilliant red color, distinguishing it from other game fish of Northwest waters.

The post Fish Facts: Guess This Rockfish Species appeared first on Sport Fishing Mag.

Do you have a photograph of a fish you can’t identify? If so, we’re up for the challenge, and would welcome the opportunity to share your photo and its ID with an international audience of enthusiasts. (Whether published or not, we will personally respond to every inquiry.) Email your jpgs, as large/hi-res as possible, to: fishfacts@sportfishingmag.com.

I recently read a short article in a fishing magazine extolling the (generally unheralded) virtues of cutlassfish (Trichiurus lepturus) as a fun gamefish in its own right. Having intentionally targeted and caught them, Fish Facts couldn’t agree more.

However, Fish Facts feels the need to set the record straight since the article stated that cutlassfish “use their sharp pointed tail to slash like a knife.” Not so much. It’s true that the odd critters lack any caudal structure: Their body at the stern end simply tapers right down to a point. But sharp? As with the long — rather elegant — dorsal fin that runs the length of the body, the tail is soft, tapering to a thin filament and lacking any spine. Sure, if you grab a cutlassfish, it will squirm and wave its body around, but that tail won’t do any damage.

On the other hand, keep your fingers out of its mouth. One look at the dagger-like fangs should dissuade even the foolhardy. That said, I’ve noticed when handling these fish that they’re generally pretty flaccid creatures and easy to handle, not nearly as fierce as they appear.

About the Cutlassfish

While on the subject, here’s a bit more information on a species that is unique, fascinating and widely available around the world in many inshore and coastal waters.

Cutlassfish are widely called ribbonfish, particularly by Gulf anglers. You won’t find them listed with that name in the IGFA book, though. Their official common name, per the authoritative Fishbase, is largehead hairtail. Cutlassfish (hairtails) can exceed seven feet. The current IGFA all-tackle record stands at 11 pounds, 5 ounces, caught on a saury off Japan in 2020.

The species is characterized by its solid, gleaming silver, chrome-plated hue, its flattened body rather like an eel after an encounter with a steamroller. The cutlass lacks scales. And while you couldn’t tell by the indifference of U.S. anglers, in much of the world it’s a highly sought (and marketed) commercial fish. I’ve filleted and eaten a number of them. Taste is subjective, but I thought they were good — not my fave, but certainly not bad. While few are eaten, many are used as bait in offshore fisheries and particularly by serious kingfish enthusiasts.

One of the most striking visuals I recall from a day in the lower Patuxent River in Maryland last year was my sounder screen. Turned out that that cutlassfish were all over the river, and it proved to be great fun on diving crankbaits. Their strikes are vicious, especially on ultralight tackle. But what really stayed with me from that day was the sounder. It stayed lit up with dozens and dozens of cutlassfish, but they didn’t present like any typical predator. That’s because their hunting style is to ambush small fish by drifting motionless vertically, head toward the surface. So they looked nothing like what I’m used to seeing when marking fish: My screen was loaded with narrow vertical slashes.

The post Fish Facts: Are the Pointy Tails of Cutlassfish Dangerous? appeared first on Sport Fishing Mag.

In the prestige column, where largemouth bass rate a 10, bowfin come up snake eyes. But those who know and appreciate bowfin will tell you when it comes to rating these species’ fight, the bowfin should come out well on top. Very few native North American game fish will outfight the bowfin. Other names for bowfin include choupique (Louisiana), grindle, mudfish or dogfish.

Notice the descriptor “native.” No one can suggest the bowfin is introduced or invasive; in fact, they’re one of the most indigenous of our fishes, found only in (eastern) North America. And this living fossil has been around longer than most species of fish — since the Triassic era, 150 to 200 million years back. It’s the only living member of the order Amiiformes, other species extinct. Clearly, the bowfin is a survivor.

Bowfin are Tough-Fighting Fish

It’s also an irascible brute. After catching many bowfin, I’ve learned to be cautious when trying to unhook one, whether boat side or in the boat. One might suppose these fish wear themselves out with their take-no-prisoners response to being hooked: They make unstoppable runs, sudden turns and come flying out of the water in wild leaps. They just don’t give up. Yeah, bowfin really do make bass seem pretty tame.

If, after all that, you can get them to boat, watch out. Bowfin launch into what anglers have termed a death spiral: they spin unstoppably, with great force, twisting and wrapping themselves in line and leader, and often making it nearly impossible to zero in on the hook in their jaw with pliers.

Where to Catch Bowfin

Often in warm weather, shallow, weedy waters without much current become increasingly hypoxic, as oxygen is used up. Thus most game fish species move out to deeper, less oxygen-deprived habitat. But one predator can remain: the bowfin. That’s because this ancient species is a bimodal breather, retaining its ability to breathe air, which it does by gulping in air at the surface which it can store in its swim bladder from which small blood vessels can take in the oxygen as if from a lung.

This explains their tendency to gulp at the surface or roll in very shallow waters. Anglers may sight-cast to these fish, but success at that can be tricky. That’s because bowfin are decidedly not visual feeders. These patient ambush hunters sit motionless over or in weeds until prey — or a lure or chunk of bait — moves essentially right in front of them. That’s the challenge for the angler. Bowfin will hammer any moving lure as a rule if they see it, so an angler has to get his retrieve right past its nose. Then, hang on! Their no-nonsense strike can rip the rod out of unprepared hands.

Fishing for Bowfin

Fortunately, the odds of being able to get close enough to drop your offering into their zone are increased because these things are not spooky. I’ve had them swim away if alarmed but not far at all, then stopping to offer more shots. They can be wary, however, and a boat may inhibit them from striking.

Sight-casting to bowfin is action at its most exciting, when fishing waters clear enough to spot them. Often, enthusiasts like Florida angler Paul MacInnis say that clear conditions and sunlight are important, since, “They don’t tend to push wakes or tail when feeding to reveal themselves. But when I can get a lure in front of one, I like to give it just a twitch or two — just enough to catch the bowfin’s attention. They’re aggressive and will usually pounce on it.”

But mostly, anglers drifting over shallow, weedy waters with low visibility, probably drift right past the big ones. That’s when fishing live or cut bait gets results. Apparently, what bowfin lack in the way of visual acuity, they compensate for with a keen sense of smell and the ability to detect vibrations.

Bowfins are Not Snakeheads

Until recently, one could maintain that bowfin couldn’t be confused with any other North American fish found in the same waters. The invasion of Asian snakeheads in much of the United States has changed that, since the two species share a similar elongate shape and distinctive characteristics such a large rounded tail and a dorsal fin that runs more than two-thirds of the body length. Those familiar with both species easily distinguish them since the snakehead’s head is more streamline like a snake, whereas the bowfin’s is more rounded. Lastly, the snakehead has a very long anal fin, while the bowfin’s is quite short.

Of course a major difference is that bowfin are native sons. While some anglers mistakenly accuse them of “eating all the bass” and other gamefish, they’re not any kind of a threat to the ecological balance of waters in which they live. Unwanted bowfin should be released alive. On the other hand, snakehead are considered an invasive species, and many states still ask anglers to kill them if caught.

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