All about False Albacore (Albies) and Bonito

[crosseyedbass]

Who caught a false albacore this fall and can give some tips? I have read a lot and see they can pop up in the surf quickly. Almost impossible to run after so what are the signs and what do you look for? Thanks

[BassBuddah]

It's tricky because some mistake feeding bluefish for albacore. Albacore move much more quickly and the splashes are not as big. Your best bet is to get out there early in the morning and try blind casting small metal. Don't use too much hardware because they have very keen eyesight.

[paco33]

I second that. Or tie direct

[dogfish]

You can reach them better in a kayak. If not be prepared to cast a thousand times if you don't see them on top.

[cowherder]

thanks for the tips guys I want to try for them too next fall

[surfwalker]

Albies that's the only time of the year I'll slow down on Bass plugging and target Albies. I love hooking up with these nuts. I've seen them come the middle of August, but they're not really feeding agressively then, more casual, in my area of Jersey. Toward the end of Aug., then Sept and Oct. I pick up most of them. I used to chase them when I was real young, but that's was frusturating then. Now I blind cast in a few spots and do pretty well. They seem to circle back over and over again, if the bait is thick. They are constant movers. I use a regular mono leader about 4 feet, swivel from the main line and then tie a Gibbs minnow, 2oz. metal or any slender metal directly to my leader. I know there are all different techniques, but these work for me. If you hook up and the line goes limp, he's coming right at you , reel like crazy and catch up to him. My retrieves vary from casual to pretty quick. Also, on the cast, I stop the metal before it hits the water to make a bigger splash. I could go on and on but I'm getting sweaty palms, just posting about them.

Happy Trails

[Monty]

This was my first (and only) Albie that I caught this past year.
On a teaser in front of a pencil.
Was an incredible fight, drag screeeeamed.
What a rush.

[7deadlyplugs]

If you hook up and the line goes limp, he's coming right at you , reel like crazy and catch up to him. My retrieves vary from casual to pretty quick. Also, on the cast, I stop the metal before it hits the water to make a bigger splash. I could go on and on but I'm getting sweaty palms, just posting about them.

Happy Trails

I saw albies being caught about 2 years ago at Breezy Point. I was walking with my Dad, and we came to a place where they were catching them. They only got a couple, but the intensity of the reeling struck me. It was like they were all jacked up on drugs or something. I never saw guys reel so fast.

Wow Monty beautiful fish, any idea how much it weighed?

[surfwalker]

Nice one Monty, pictures are great. I've lost plenty of pencils and poppers when they wrap around their tail after grabbing the teaser. Those Albies are completely crazy, and they drive me crazy also. I'm sure some others can contribute to this thread. I enjoy reading about others experiences as much as I enjoy catching Albies.

[Monty]

Not sure on the weight. What a great surprise that fish was. When the reel started sreaming it was an awsome fight. I was actually shaking from the adrenalin rush after I released the fish.

Wow Monty beautiful fish, any idea how much it weighed?

[DarkSkies]

Here's my best albie story. A little long, but it's been said I get paid by the word.


2007
Went to MoCo because I had a hunch they would be there. Driving down, the high winds were rattling my truck. This was at 5am in the morning. You know when it's windy in the morning it's going to be a tough day.

I got there, and decided to hang for awhile because it was so windy. I set up my one rod with a green deadly ****, #3 or 4 size (larger one). I checked all connections, tied it directly to a 20# flouro leader, carefully checked my knots. Made sure I had spare pre-cut fluoro coils in case bluefish came along. Then I set out with my surf bag and 2 rods.

Sometime after sunrise around 7am, I made it to the sand. As I was walking, the ferocity of the wind made me question my sanity. This was one of the days whe the wind was blowing sideways. Blowing steady at 25mph, with gusts up to 45.

I'm walkin out to the water, sayin I must be an idiot to fish this wind, no one else will be here. I get there and there were at least 10 other guys bundled up and casting in this crazy windstorm.

The wind was so bad that as I walked out facing into it, I turned my back, and tried to lean as if I might fall down. I couldn't, the wind kept me upright.

The only positive thing is that the wind was blowing hard from the NW, which made casting off the beach a breeze. I set up in the que of guys, picking a place a little away from the crowd. At first, no one was catching, but they were casting and reeling like madmen. After about 15 mins, the first fish was caught, and it was on like Donkey Kong!

As soon as I saw that albie beached, I knew I had to get one too. There's a lot of different advice out there about retrieve and presentation for albies, but that day the guys using deadly ***** and reeling like madmen were catching the most.

And it ain't easy unless they are in a frenzy. Where we were fishing, you couldn't see albies or bait. If you walked by us, you might wonder what the heck we were doing, only one hit every 50 casts or so.

But what a rush, what a trip when one hit the metal! I was lucky, my first one was pretty big, 10 or 11 lbs, while some of the others were 6-9. Took half my line on the first run, and then made another run after I had it halfway in, almost as long. After that, it was tired. I brought it in quick.

The relatively large size of my first albie was enough to keep me hooked forever. I will always remember those powerful runs.

The thing about albies is you can't eat them, meat is too bloody, cat food. You bring them in and they're half-dead, so unless you can get them back within 60 seconds with minimal handling, they end up as crab food floating in the wash.

All the guys fishing for them that day were serious fishermen, and I picked up on the quick release after watching a few. I had the fish back in in about 30 secs. After about 1/2 hour of hard casting, I got another one, 2 total for that day. A little smaller, but still pulled drag. Pic below.

Catching the albies added to the list of addictive experiences that makes signals flash in my brain.

As long as they are available to us surfcasters, I will be fishin for them in the fall.

Sorry if this was a little long-winded, but I wanted to give those who never fished for them a glimpse of what can go on in your brain when you get one.

We'll be into them soon, let's hear about your first albie experience.
Attached Thumbnails

[DarkSkies]

This was my first (and only) Albie that I caught this past year.
On a teaser in front of a pencil.
Was an incredible fight, drag screeeeamed.
What a rush.

Beautiful fish Monty, I remember reading that when you first posted it.

Don't want to embarass Monty here, but he's one of the few guys who caught an albie from the surf last year.

They made a really poor showing, and some guys I know who are finatics about them couldn't get a break or an albie for 2008. They were around for a few days at most, depending who you talk to. Some guys swear they never showed up at all, the 2008 surf albie season was that bad.

Yet somehow Monty got one, and he was modest about it. So I hope he doesn't mind if I talk it up a little here, as he deserves a or 2 for his catch.

Nice goin, Monty!

[surfwalker]

Great story Dark. Last year I only saw Albies for about 10 seconds and then that was it. Didn't hook up a one.

[DarkSkies]

Thanks surfwalker, I had the same experience you did for 2008.

I did see them one morning early right after sunrise, they moved through the water about 300' offshore in a flash but never came back. I was hooked into these guys who were chasing them and gave me some good intel, but the NJ 2008 surf albie bite was one of the worst in quite some time.

I was real disappointed because from what some of the boat guys were sayin, there were schools anywhere from a 1/8 to 1/2mile out, and they touched over on the NY side at the Point.

There was also a sustained frikkin 2 DAY BITE on the NS of LI, North Fork area. I met some guys at the MSA show in Farmingdale who confirmed earlier intel I had. They had them for 2 days heavy!! So maybe I'm a (little ) jealous but at least someone got into them good and there were some reports at Montauk, but mostly from boats.

Oh well, that's fishin!!

[surfwalker]

Dark, some years they come in, some they don't. I wish they were around most of the season, every year.

[cowherder]

This guy Gordon Churchill writes some great stories.


Everything you always wanted to know about
false albacore fishing

...but didn't know how to ask.

To read more about albie fishing click here to read my piece from the October 99 issue of Carolina Adventure.
Do you know what a "Melt- Away" is? No, it's not an old type of candy that dissolves in your mouth. It is what happens to your flyline when you hook into a false albacore! These small members of the tuna family are the fastest fish that an inshore flyrodder can pursue. One can zoom up the beach, take your fly and be 300 yards away in a matter of seconds! Even a bonefish, the speedster of the shallow water flats, would be stuck at the starting line in a 100 meter dash against a false albacore. The beaches around Cape Lookout , NC are host to what is quickly becoming a world renowned annual event every fall. False albacore run the shoreline crashing bait in extremely shallow water. Often so shallow that you would think they would get stuck. The silversides erupt in panic and huge boils and splashes show up where a speeding fish just snatched a snack.



God made many beautiful places on this planet, he didn't make many of them more beautiful than Cape Lookout, North Carolina at the northeastern end of Onslow Bay. It is place of ocean breezes, sea grass and perfect sunsets. The sand is ideal and the surf ranges from raging and crashing in one place to gently pushing against the shore in another. Due to the shape of Barden Inlet there is always a lee shore at the Cape. No matter which direction the wind is blowing from, there is a place where it is greatly diminished. There are dunes and a myriad of seabirds. There is also an unbelievable amount of life in the water. The tidal current is remarkably strong and deep water is right next to the shore. This is a surfcaster's dream. With just a short cast the possibility to catch outsized fish is very real. I have seen cobia swim right by my feet. I once saw a very large tiger shark swim lazily on the surface just a hundred yards from the beach. While wading up to mid-thigh I was surprised by large mullet flying from the water right into me to escape from something bigger that was chasing them. I got out of the water. Sea turtles nest here and a huge Leatherback turtle the size of a VW Beetle once gave me the opportunity to study it close up at it swam right on the surface. I was amazed to see the cobia's and pilotfish and assorted smaller fish that were using it as their home. Loggerhead turtles routinely swim in the surf in broad daylight. I have even seen a huge ocean sunfish, or mola-mola, finning lazily along.

The only way to get to the Cape is by boat or ferry. There are no roads or bridges and hopefully it will stay that way for a long time as it is a national seashore. The National Parks Service runs a ferry out to the lighthouse and the local marinas will also take you out there. There is also a car ferry that runs from Atlantic that surf fishermen use to get their beach buggies onto the island. Cape Lookout itself is shaped like a fish hook turned on it's side with the point of the hook facing north and the shank of the hook to the east, like a huge capital "J". At the bend of the "J" is Cape Point.

This is a premier surf fishing location with many red drum taken in the fall as well as flounder, gray trout, speckled trout, sea mullet, Spanish mackerel and any other thing you could catch in the surf. This is the home of the pounding surf and the ocean breezes. The Cape Lookout Shoals are right in front of you and the tide and wind combine to make it a torrent. The waves crash back and forth against each other and many ships were lost in this area. In fact the whole area from Cape Lookout up to Oregon Inlet is known as "The Graveyard of The Atlantic" due to the number of ships lost at sea.




False Albacore (or little tunny) are regarded as trash fish by many of the people who regularly ply the coastal waters in search of King and Spanish mackerel.

They disregard them for the fact they are difficult to prepare as table fare, especially when compared to a mackerel, and aren't much to write home about after one has been consumed. They are also derided because of their tendency to tear up the tackle of those who spend long hours preparing trolling rigs for other species. It is for those very reasons that the fish is now being so highly thought of a sport fish. Since nobody likes to eat them they are not highly pursued so they are numerous throughout their range and flyfishermen seem to enjoy tying into fish that can tear up tackle. How else can you explain the high tech single piece machined aluminum and even titanium reels on the market. Some of these reels will retail for over $500.00. I just use one that has a nice drag and holds 300 yards of 20 pound backing.


Mclane's New Standard Fishing Encyclopedia tries to clear up some confusion surrounding these fish. They are often misidentified as other species of tuna. This is often worsened by the wide range of the fish as it is in the Mediterranean as well as the Atlantic. Here is what Mclane says:
Until 1970 three scombrids and sometimes a fourth of the genus
Euthynnus were loosely regarded as "little tunas"; E. alletteratus, also called false albacore or bonito; E. affinis, also called wavyback skipjack or kawakawa (Hawaii); E. lineatus, also called black skipjack, and E. pelamis, also called skipjack tuna. The common tuna, little tuna, applies only to E. alletteratus."
That about clears it up for me (Not really). Any questions? Good, be ready for the exam next time.


http://www.geocities.com/capt_gordon/albiechapter.html

[cowherder]

But seriously there is quite a bit of confusion in identifying these fish because of all the colloquial names that are applied to the smaller members of the tuna family. What we call a bonito might be called something completely different someplace. What is called a false albacore on the east coast is probably called something completely different in Italy.

Further adding to the confusion is the very use of the word albacore in the most popular name for this fish. True albacore are among the most prized of all tuna's because of their excellent eating qualities and ability to put up a scrap on the end of a line. People are always asking "Are them albacore good ta eat?" Not the false albacore that are near the shore, just the real albacore that live in very deep water.




When the fish are spotted on the surface there is another bit of confusion. People often mistake them for bluefish. This can lead to quite a bit of consternation as nobody can get a hit and can't figure out why because we all know that bluefish will hit anything when they are busting on the surface. In his book Fly Rodding the Coast, Ed Mitchell mentions that this is because bluefish lures tend to be big and splashy and Albert's want their lures small and diminutive. I have found this to be right on in my experience.

The fish will be blasting bait all over the place and trollers will zip right through the breaking schools with no regard for anything else because this is the way they have always fished. Rarely will one of them hook a false albacore while trolling. The lures are too big and they are out of the strike zone too quickly. I once told a couple of fellows that were trolling with casting rods to try casting for the fish and they might have better luck. Five minutes later I noticed that they had a hookup. The predominant baitfish off of the Cape is the fish commonly known as a silversides. By fall these fish are the size of a man's middle finger (unless he is a pro basketball player, then slightly smaller). In McClane's they are described as having " a silver band, edged above with a narrow black streak." It is important to match these traits in the flies that are used because the water is clear and the fish key in on size and that silvery band helps them to pick out individuals. Small flashy flies that are tied sparsely are what do the job and bigger flies will be refused.



The best way to pursue these fish is the most obvious, get in a boat and cast to the surfacing pods of feeding albies as they run the beach. This is assuming that you have access to a boat that you can fish from. The second choice is to be ferried over from Harker's and fish the beach in the hook area of the Cape. This is a bit more difficult. If flycasting you will need to use the shooting head system to make longer casts to reach fish that are either out away from you or up the beach from you. You also MUST have a shooting basket. The tidal current is so strong here that you can't cast if your line is laying in the water. Waders are another must. The water will be cooler in October than most people in North Carolina are used to. A decent pair of waders is essential for flyfishing the surf in autumn.

Then you pretty much stake out a spot where the fish have been seen rising and it becomes a waiting game. Blindcast around that spot while waiting for fish to show.

Mitchell says that most albacore caught by surfcasters are just before any surface activity is apparent. I like to keep casting just because I get bored otherwise. If fishing from a boat it becomes easy to chase the surfacing schools from place to place. Let me just tell you, whenever I have seen surfacing schools of fish and decided to run the boat over to try to get a few casts off, 9 times out of ten they were gone before I got there and then the fish were surfacing over where I just was.

Don't chase. It's counterproductive. Just drift and be patient. If you are in an area where the fish have been working then chances are they will show up there again and practically be jumping into the boat. The clear intermediate lines from Airflo are the best things going for casting to surface feeding schooling fish. The Airflo line doesn't kink and doesn't require a lot of stretching to get it ready. Another option is using one of the all in one sinking head lines such as an Orvis Depth Charge which will produce fish that are cruising below and not necessarily breaking the surface. When a big school breaks in front of you it becomes almost impossible to make a cast of more than 10 feet because of pounding heart and uncoordination brought on by fish crashing bait so close they can be touched with the rod tip. It is a wild spectacle that is about the most fun that can be had while fishing.



Like I said before, the best flies are slender silversides imitations about the size of a my middle finger. The Gordo Clouser work well . I like these flies on hooks sized from 2 through 1/0. During the 99 albert season I got turned on to flies tied on circle hooks. The Circle Hook Minnow is an extremely effective pattern. Not only is it easier to release the fish when you get it to the boat, it is more likely that the fish will get to the boat. Fish hooked on circle hooks do not get away unless the line breaks. You do not experience mysterious hook pullings with circle hooks. We have even laid rods down with a fish on and let the line go completely slack with a barbless hook. The fish was landed. These flies are effective because they match the profile of the baitfish.

From my experience, the number one most important factor in getting a fish to strike a fly is presentation. The fly must be placed so the fish can get to it without being spooked. Many anglers fishing for albies retrieve too fast. A moderate retrieve is often the best and keeps the fly in the strike zone longest. The next most important thing is the size and shape of the imitation being used.

When fish are feeding on bait that is as abundant as the silversides are at Cape Lookout, then anything that is too big or not the proper shape stands out quite blatantly as a fake.

At times the predominant bait will be the tiny bay anchovies, then it is necessary to scale down even more. A fly that works well is the Bulletproof Baitfish that I developed. Tie it no more than 1 1/2 inches long and very sparsely. It works wonders on bay anchovy feeding fish. You may alsowant to try a small marabou streamer. The third most important thing is color. If the presentation is good, nice long casts into the middle of breaking fish, and the fly is the proper size and shape as the bait the fish are taking, then something of a more natural match of the color may be needed.

[storminsteve]

The little tunny name is weird to me, because apparently they are not a member of the tuna family at all, they are from the mackeral family. And they call them bonito on the gulf coast, but the bonito they get here seem to be different colored than the false albacore.


http://www.thejump.net/id/false-albacore.htm

False Albacore, Little Tunny, or Bonito

The fish picture to the left is probably the most confused fish around. Not only does this fish of the Mackerel family have many common names but one of the common names is actually the name of another fish that looks similiar.

The proper common name for this species is False Albacore or Little Tunny. But if you ask fisherman along most of the Gulf Coast you will get a different answer. BONITO! Unfortunately this often causes great confusion with a similiar fish, the Atlantic Bonito.



The scientific name is Euthynnus alletteratus. This species has a wide range. They can be found on the open oceans from Maine, south all the way to Brazil as well as inshore waters.

Bonito... sorry False Albacore are fun to catch but aren't the best table fare. Off the Louisiana coast they are either released or used as bait for other species. Chunks of bonito.. sorry, False Albacore are great for catching big redsnapper and tuna!

[vpass]

http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/fish/Galler...ttletunny.html


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LITTLE TUNNY
Order - Perciformes
Family - Scombridae
Genus - Euthynnus
Species - alletteratus





Taxonomy
The little tunny was first described by Rafinesque in 1810 as Euthynnus alletteratus. He also referred to this fish as Euthinnus alleteratus, Scomber alleteratus, Pelamys alleterata, Gymnosarda alletterata, Euthynnus alleteratus alleteratus, Gymnosarda alleterata, Euthynnus alliteratus, and Euthynnus allitteratus. The genus name Euthynnus is derived from the Greek "eu" = good and "thynnos" = tunna. Synonyms referring to the little tunny include Scomber quadripunctatus Geoffrey St. Hilaire 1817, Euthynnus quadripunctatus Geoffrey St. Hilaire 1817, Thynnus leachianus Risso 1827, Thynnus thunina Cuvier 1829, Euthynnus thunina Cuvier 1829, Orcynus thunnina Cuvier 1829, Thynnichthys thunnina Cuvier 1829, Thynnus brasiliensis Cuvier 1832, Thynnichthys brevipinnis Cuvier 1832, Thynnus brevipinnis Cuvier 1832, and Euthynnus alletteratus aurolitoralis Fraser-Brunner 1949.

The family Scombridae includes the mackerels and tunas and includes 15 genera and 49 species worldwide.


Common Names
English language common names include little tunny, Atlantic little tuna, Atlantic little tunny, bone-eater, bonito, false albacore, little tuna, and mackerel tuna. European language-based common names include alletterato (Italian), apluro (Portuguese), atuncito (Spanish), bacoreta (Spanish), barrilete (Portuguese), bonite queue raide (French), bonito-pintado (Portguese), cachorra (Creole), cachorreta (Creole), cachorrinha (Creole), carachana (Spanish), carachana pintado (Spanish), falscher bonito (German), fule-fule (Portuguese), gueule molle (Creole), melena (Portuguese), melva (Portuguese), merma (Portuguese), ravil (French), thonine (French), thunnin (Danish), tonina (Maltese), and tonnetto (Italian). Other common names are atlanticheskyj malyj tunets (Russian), atlantiese kleintuna (Afrikaans), balamydah (Arabic), karvouni (Greek), luc (East Adriatic Coast Slavic languages), taiwan yaito (Japanese), ton mic (Romanian), and tunek atlantycki (Polish) as well as the Scandinavian names of tunniina (Finnish), tunnin (Norwegian), and tunnina (Swedish).


Geographical Distribution
The little tunny is found worldwide in tropical to temperate waters, between 56°N-30°S. In the western Atlantic Ocean, it ranges from Massachusetts (US), south to Brazil, including the Gulf of Mexico, Caribbean Sea, and Bermuda. It is the most common scombrid in the western north Atlantic. Other locations include the Mediterranean Sea and the Black Sea.








Habitat
This fish is typically found in neritic waters, inshore over the continental shelf in turbid, brackish waters. Adult little tunny school according to size with other scombrid species at depths ranging from 3-490 feet (1-150m). However, during certain times of the year the schools break apart with individuals scattering throughout the habitat. Juveniles form compact schools offshore.



Biology

Little tunny
© J. Soward



· Distinctive Features
The little tunny has a robust, torpedo-shaped body built for powerful swimming. The mouth is large, slightly curved, and terminal with rigid jaws. The lower jaw slightly protruding past the upper jaw. There are two longitudinal ridges on the tongue. Scales are lacking on the body except for the corselet and the lateral line. The corselet is a band of large, thick scales forming a circle around the body behind the head, extending backwards along the lateral line. The lateral line is slightly undulate with a slight arch below the front of the dorsal fin, then straight to the caudal keel. The caudal fin is deeply lunate, with a slender caudal penduncle including one short keel on each side. The first dorsal fin has high anterior spines giving the fin a concave outline, separated only narrowly from the second dorsal. Pectoral fins are pointed and short, not reaching to the end of the first dorsal; the pelvic fins are inserted just behind the origin of the pectoral fins. Swimbladder is absent.


Little tunny
© George Burgess



· Coloration
This fish is steel blue with 3-5 broken, dark wavy lines, not extending below the lateral line. The belly is white and lacks stripes. There are 3-7 dark spots between the pelvic and pectoral fins. Spots below the pectoral fin are dusky.



·Size, Age, and Growth
The average size of the little tunny is up to 32 inches (81 cm) in length, weighing up to 20 lbs (9.1 kg). The maximum recorded size is 48 inches (122 cm) and 35.3 lbs (16 kg). The little tunny may live to 10 years of age. Females reach maturity at 10.6-14.6 inches (27-37 cm) in length while males mature at approximately 15.7 inches (40 cm).



·Dentition
Lower jaw protrudes slightly past the upper jaw; there is a single row of small, inwardly curved teeth with similar teeth on the palatines. Teeth are absent on the vomer and tongue.





· Food Habits
Little tunny is an opportunistic predator, feeding on crustaceans, clupeid fishes, squids, and tunicates. It often feeds on herring and sardines at the surface of the water.



· Reproduction
Spawning occurs in April through November in the eastern and western Atlantic Ocean while in the Mediterranean Sea spawning takes place from late spring through summer. Little tunny spawn outside the continental shelf region in water of at least 77°F (25°C), where females release as many as 1,750,000 eggs in multiple batches. The males release sperm, fertilizing the eggs in the water column. These fertilized eggs are pelagic, spherical, and transparent, with a diameter of 0.8-1.1 mm. The yolk is Little tunny juvenile
© George Burgess


rich in black pigment and the egg is a light amber color overall. There is a single droplet of oil within the egg, adding to its buoyancy. Larvae, approximately 3 mm in size, are released 24 hours after fertilization, with the yolk being completely absorbed within the first 48-66 hours of life. The eyes are unpigmented at hatching, with pigmentation appearing 48 hours later. A small caudal spot is present. At sizes of 3.7-14mm, the teeth develop, the head becomes large, the snout long, and the fins develop. Juveniles from 14mm-174mm in length take on the adult appearance with the body becoming more fusiform and elongate.




Predators
Other tunas, including conspecifics and yellowfin tuna (Thynnus albacares). Fishes such as dolphinfish (Coryphaena hippurus), wahoo (Acanthocybium solandri), atlantic sailfish (Istiophorus albicans), swordfish (Xiphias gladius), and various sharks as well as other large carnivorous fish all prey on the little tunny. Seabirds also prey on small little tunny.



· Parasites
Parasites of the little tunny include the copepods Caligus bonito, Caligus coryphaenae, and Caligus productus, all found on the body surface as well as on the wall of the branchial cavities. Another copepod, Pseudocycnoides appendiculatus, has been documented as parasitic on the gill filaments. Other parasites include digenea (flukes), monogenea (gillworms), cestoda (tapeworms), and isopods.







Importance to Humans

The little tunny is commercially important in many locations including the West Indies. The flesh of the little tunny is darker and stronger tasting than that of the other large tunas. It is marketed fresh, dried, canned, smoked, and frozen. There have been reports of ciguatera poisoning related to human consumption of this fish. It is often caught on hook and line by trolling with lures near reefs. Also it is considered an excellent game fish due to their hard fighting ability once hooked. The little tunny is frequently used as a bait for shark and marlin fisheries, primarily due to their high oil content and good hook retention.



Conservation
This fish is not listed as endangered or vulnerable with the World Conservation Union (IUCN). The IUCN is a global union of states, governmental agencies, and non-governmental organizations in a partnership that assesses the conservation status of species.





Prepared by:

Cathleen Bester

[DarkSkies]

Some of the most interesting things are rigs that when you talk about them, they don't make sense.

I met a guy the other day who swears by this rig. It's unusual, for sure. He claims he nailed them on this rig 2 years ago, so who am I to argue? I like to see the different innovations people come up with. Bottom line, if you use it, and catch a fish on it, who is anyone else to tell ya it can't work? Plus you have a lot more confidence when you know it produces.

Basics for this rig:

Take a Roberts Ranger, remove the hooks.

Attach a flouro leader to the swivel, and tie the other end to a teaser of your choice.

That Roberts Ranger canl give you the distance you need. At times they will be close, but the biggest complaint I've heard is: Man they were just 30 yards out of my casting range. Other times if you need more distance, a slim metal like a Deadly **** is a better choice.
This rig is streamlined and can punch it out, especially in windy conditions.

Credit for this rig goes to Ron, a retired guy I met on the sand.