WAHOO (Acanthocybium solanderi)
◎A long, slender fish with a pointed snout and mouthful of sharp teeth; gills lack the white “teeth” or protrusions called gillrakers; coloration is dark blue or cobalt blue on top, fading to pale blue sides and a silvery blue belly; dark, verticle bands are present along the sides, similar to the stripes on a tiger.
◎Similar Fish: King Mackerel; distinguishable by the lack of gillrakers, a first dorsal fin which is longer and much fuller, and a caudal fin which is decidedly more upright (much less pronounced fork).
◎Size: up to 150 pounds; average size ranges from 20 - 35 pounds.
WEAK FISH ((Gray Trout, Yellowfin Trout, Squeteague,Tiderunner) Cynoscion regalis)
◎Silvery body and sides with some olive shading along the top of the back; numerous dark blotches appear on the back and the sides, some of which may appear to align and form wavy lines; fins are a uniform dusky color, some of which may have a yellowish margin; body is long and slender; upper jaw possesses two large canine teeth.
◎Similar Fish: closely related and similar in appearance to the Spotted Seatrout; distinguishable by the dorsal and caudal fins which are a uniform dusky coloration without any markings (spotted seatrout have black dots on these fins).
◎Size: up to 20 pounds; average size ranges from ½ ~ 8 pounds.
WHITE MARLIN (Tetrapturus albidus)
◎Elongated body colored dark blue or cobalt blue on top fading to silvery white belly; first part of dorsal fin is rounded and features small black or dark spots; anal fin is rounded.
◎Similar Fish: closely related and similar in appearance to Blue Marlin; distinguishable by rounded first part of dorsal fin (which also features spots) and rounded anal fin (dorsal and anal fins of blue marlin are pointed).
◎Size: up to 180 pounds; average size ranges from 40 ~ 70 pounds.
YELLOWFIN TUNA ((Allison Tuna) Thunnus albacares)
◎Streamlined body tapering from head to tail; finlets, colored yellow, are present between dorsal and anal fins and the caudal fin; second dorsal and anal fin tend to be elongated (particularly on larger fish) and are colored yellow; pectoral fin is long, extending past the start of the second dorsal fin; coloration is dark blue on the top, fading along the sides with golden or yellow highlights to a light colored belly.
◎Similar Fish: closely related and similar in appearance to Bluefin Tuna and Bigeye Tuna; distinguishable from both species by 1) length of pectoral fin, which extends rearward past start of second dorsal fin (pectoral fin on bluefin tuna does not extend to start of second dorsal fin, while on bigeye tuna it extends just to the start of second dorsal fin); and, 2) its liver, which has a smooth surface on all sides and is not symmetrical in shape (both bluefin and bigeye tuna have livers which are striated on one side, which is caused by blood vessels just under the surface of the liver, and are symmetrically shaped); distinguishable from bluefin tuna by number of gillrakers on first gill arch (yellowfin tuna have 27 ~ 33 gillrakers on gill arch, while bluefin tuna have 34 ~ 43 gillrakers); often, the very similar appearance of bigeye and yellowfin tuna necessitates examination of the liver for a positive identification.
◎Size: up to 385 pounds; average size ranges from 30 - 80 pounds.