Barracuda

GREAT BARRACUDA - Sphyraena barracuda Family Sphyraenidae, BARRACUDAS

 Description: gray, with a greenish cast above, whitish below; many irregular, small black blotches on lower side; 18 to 22 diagonal dark bars on upper side (not always evident); caudal fin dark with white tips; 75 to 87 lateral line scales; no fleshy tip on jaw. Young (not shown): dark stripe on side; stripe breaks into dark squarish blotches as fish grows.
Size: to 2 m (6 ft.) and 48 kg (106 lbs.); reports of larger fish unverified.
Where Found: young live in inshore seagrass beds; adults range from inshore channels to open ocean.
Remarks: most attacks on people have occurred when they were wading or swimming in turbid water while wearing bright objects, attempting to spear a barracuda, or carrying speared fish; flesh of smaller fish apparently not poisonous, but larger fish sometimes very toxic due to ciguatera; no safe, reliable way of recognizing toxic fish.

A flashy and aggressive fighter, the Barracuda is often called the Tiger of the Sea. The preferred habitat is high-profile bottom such as reefs and wrecks. Barracuda are pike-like fishes, elongated and slender with long jaws and protruding, razor-sharp teeth. The body is colored silver overall, with dark green to gray along the back. Blotches on the lower sides are variable in number, size, and position. The species reaches a length of 6 feet and a weight slightly greater than 100 pounds. In the more southern part of the range, the flesh, particularly of larger fish, is considered toxic, being associated with fish poisoning, or ciguatera.

Barracuda are piscivorous and feed on many species of fish. Favorite foods are jacks, needle fish, silversides, parrot fish, and filefish. Most anglers catch Barracuda by trolling spoons, feathered jigs with strips of fish, bucktail jigs, or brightly colored rubber tubing, which are eel-like and spin as they move through the water. The trick to catching the species seems to be lure action as much as anything else. Trolling or retrieval speed must be rapid and the lure action should be erratic to excite the fish into biting. Some fishermen use spinning and bait-casting tackle to cast topwater plugs. A 9 weight fly rod with a long and brightly colored pattern, retrieved quickly, is effective for the fly fisherman. For shallow-water casting, the ideal lure is a plug about 4 inches long. It should be made of wood or very durable plastic so it won't be destroyed by the Cuda's teeth. Wire leaders are essential regardless of the type of tackle used.