By Scotty Kyle
They call me “Silver King”, and I am one of the most sought-after species for sport fly-fishers anywhere in the world. Human scientists named us “Megalops atlanticus,” the “big eyes of the Atlantic”. I have no teeth and, apparently, don’t taste very good, but fanatical sport anglers literally go to the ends of the world and spend massive sums of money for an opportunity to do battle with my species. I am Atlantic tarpon.
I can grow to over two meters in length (79 in.) and up to 127 kilograms (280 lbs.) and one of my species lived for 68 years in captivity. There is no mistaking a member of our genus. We are laterally compressed (thin) with very large eyes and there are massive shiny silver scales over most of our body.
Our mouths are very large with solid, sharp, bony jaws and they can be extended well beyond the front of our heads when gulping in food. If any other assistance was needed for our identification, we all have a peculiar, obvious and characteristic thin, backward flowing extension to our dorsal fin that separates us from all other fish.
But, with no teeth and not being a wonderful eating delicacy, why has mankind put me on a fly-fishing pedestal? Amazingly it is this very ability to escape that make us so appealing. The truth is that very few anglers, even those with substantial resources, time and enthusiasm, have managed to land a really big tarpon.
I can fight. Not only can I fight, but I fight so well that I usually get free even after being firmly hooked. Our mouths are made of bone and cartilage with very little soft flesh and, most times if we take a fly or lure, even the most expert angler will fail to set the hook. If the hook is set, we leap high out of the water repeatedly and shake our heads so aggressively, strongly and repeatedly, that any hooks are usually thrown out. This action can turn a sport angler’s legs to jelly as he knows that these fantastic leaps often result in our escape and the angler being left in a stunned silence with adrenaline uselessly pumping in his veins.
Apart from me, there is another species you call tarpon. The oxeye tarpon (Megalops cyprinoides), is distributed throughout the warmer areas of the Indian and Pacific Oceans. Although we have similar appearance and behavior, my cousins can only grow to a maximum of 105 cm (41 in.) and 18 kg. (40 lbs.). They can live for 44 years and, in some areas around east Africa and northern Australia, are also a sought-after sport angling species.
We are an ancient line that can trace our genus back over 50 million years. We developed such a successful shape, size and manner of living and feeding that, like the crocodile, we seem to have changed little since well before humans were around.
We have an intricate life cycle not yet fully understood by scientists or anglers. We are believed to spawn in offshore calm waters in late spring and early summer. The fertilised eggs develop and hatch rapidly in the top layers of the ocean and become tiny, leaf-like organisms called “leptocephali larvae” that drift in the ocean current for several weeks. Interestingly, these larvae cannot feed in the conventional way but absorb nutrients through the mouth and buccal cavity linings (called integumental absorption).
From this stage the young tarpon morph into a more conventional, but still tiny, fish larva that drifts at the mercy of the current and feeds on fish eggs and other zooplankton. After a few weeks the tarpon begins to prey on small fish and invertebrates. We then break away from the ocean currents and migrate to shallow coastal waters, where most enter estuaries and head into fresh water to continue their growth and development.
As adults we feed mostly on live fish and we are excellent, efficient and scary top predators. Most of the time and in many areas, we are solitary and shun each other’s company. Around the coast of Florida, however, large tarpon congregate in great numbers and cruise the shallows in search of shoals of small fish. Some of these fish have even trained humans to feed them at specific times and places and large aggregations of humans come along to these places in order to feed us.
These tarpon, only a couple of inches long, look almost identical to adults and already have the extension to their dorsal fins. They are common in suitable estuaries and lagoons, and some may travel great distances up rivers and become resident in lakes most cut off from the marine environment. In Africa the oxeye tarpon has been known to travel hundreds of kilometers up the Zambezi River. In North America, our species rarely penetrates far up rivers, but we are common in the lower reaches of the Mississippi
Our original range stretched across warmer regions of both sides of the Atlantic Ocean, from Virginia in the USA southwards to Brazil, until a few of us sneaked through the Panama Canal and have formed small populations around it/s outflow. On the eastern Atlantic Coast, we can be found in waters from Senegal to Angola in west Africa. We are rarely found far from shore and do prefer to feed and move near the surface.
Most of the time we tend to be secretive and keep a low profile, but a strange reality is that we are one of the few “obligate air breathers”. This is good in that we can survive for long periods when oxygen levels in the water are low and competing species cannot survive. On the unfortunate side it means that in quiet backwaters if our species are present an astute angler will notice when and where we surface to gulp in air. This air, as it is richer in oxygen than water, enables us to be “turbo-charged” for brief periods after a good gulp.
Localities, times and conditions when there is a good chance of hooking into a magnificent Atlantic tarpon include many hotspots around the Florida coast, some marshes in the Mississippi delta. Around the Caribbean Sea there are quite a few places including some coastal areas of Cuba and in and around river mouths down the south American coast. Many of these are not well known and indeed kept secret, while others are difficult to access.
Across the Atlantic Ocean good prospects are becoming available on the west African coast including in Gambia, Cameroon, Gabon and Angola. Unfortunately, many potentially excellent areas are too dangerous to visit or have been overfished by local populations.
The internet, unavailable to us fish, seems to be an excellent way to identify good, safe and approachable tarpon fishing areas. Browsing an online marketplace like BaitYourHook.com will give you a list of anglers and charter operators, that you can filter by country, dates, and other parameters that are important to you. You can make your judgement by reading customer reviews. Fishing with a reputable guide will bring you not only access to the areas, but also the transport, equipment, techniques and knowledge necessary to be there at the right time of year, day, weather and tidal conditions.
We tarpon are very particular about what baits we will take, when we will take them and how they need to be presented. Atlantic tarpon will take dead and live baits, but most of the targeted tarpon angling is carried out by sport, not food, anglers and their favorites are spinning or fly-fishing outfits. If you want to catch a big tarpon then really strong, robust equipment is essential.
When we take a bait, lure or fly we usually begin to move off rapidly and strongly. Trying to set the hook, by tightening the line or drag will infuriate us and we will respond by rapidly and very strongly accelerating away, often for a great distance. Almost certainly this will be accompanied by explosive, high leaps out of that water, while vigorously shaking our heads with our mouths wide open. Even the most experienced, careful and well-equipped sport angler will lose most tarpon during this first adrenaline-pumping, heart-stopping run.
While we live in many areas and can be caught all year-round, local knowledge and experience is essential. We feed mostly at night, hence the huge eyes, and we tend to take large and often fast-moving prey, which we simply engulf in one swallow. We can also anticipate when and where food will be abundant and congregate and feed voraciously at these times and places.
In countries such as Gabon, for example, the best time of year is summer and the best time day is before sunrise or around sunset. On top of that, fishing is usually best after good rains, when the rivers flush food into the coastal waters and, within a large lagoon or estuary, there will be areas where we feed and others we do not frequent.
To land a good Atlantic tarpon you have to be well prepared, mentally and physically, have suitable equipment in top condition with no weak spots, have local knowledge of where and when the fish will be feeding and use the right tackle in the correct manner. Most fish hooked will get off and so a good degree of luck and tenacity is essential.
The final reward, however, of successfully hooking, playing and landing a massive Atlantic tarpon will far outweigh any expense of time, effort and resources. Few human experiences can compare to landing, and releasing, your first magnificent tarpon. If Atlantic tarpon is on your bucket list, it is best to do it sooner rather than later as the strength and stamina necessary to land a tarpon does not last forever.
Next in “Life History of a Fish”
Life History of a Fish: Mahi-Mahi
By Scotty Kyle
I am a Mahi Mahi. Fishermen call me Mahi Mahi, Dolphinfish, or Dorado, while scientists refer to me as Coryphaena hippurus. To recreational anglers, I am a prized catch that “ticks all the boxes”. The Hawaiians named me Mahi Mahi, which means “strong strong,” and reflects my resilience and power, especially since I am not a fan of being caught and often not released. CONTINUE READING
