I decided to take my new (to me) 232 Sea Hunt out to the Charleston 60 yesterday for my first dive trip on the boat. Everything went very smoothly despite how rough the weather was. Took every wave on the bow heading out in 3-5’ seas that were stacked up but still made 15 to 20 kts.
Not much was happening fishing on the charleston 60 and I think all of the other 6 boats there would agree. After an hour and two 6" seabass we decided it was time to dive. While suiting up we had a boat proceed to drop anchor withing 10’ of our anchor so we had to wave them off and that took a bit of work. Not sure what their plan with that was. If you see this flag, stay far away so you don’t endanger divers lives.
Visibility was much worse than last week and we could feel lots of surge on the bottom from the rough conditions. Saw a very nice cobia on the drop down but wasn’t loaded so didn’t get a shot at it. It was also right behind Mikes head so I wouldn’t have taken that shot anyways. After searching around a bit and seeing nothing but 10^5 spadefish, small sheepshead, shy grouper that took off, and one trigger fish, we decided to hunt spadefish for some meat for the grill. I was sure we would see some sharks with all of the green blood in the water but all we encountered was a very large very friendly remora that wouldn’t leave us alone.
Good time on the water with Shaun and Mike.
Does anyone know how big these fish can get? This thing was HUGE!
quote:[i]
Not much was happening fishing on the charleston 60 and I think all of the other 6 boats there would agree.
yes I would! We moved over a few miles to some live bottom and caught a limit of sea bass, but it was a heck of a ride out there and back just for that. Surfing the swell back in was pretty hairy! A little more sea state than I like in my little boat.
thanks for the pics & video, always like to get a glimpse of what’s really down there!
I was there in the 29ft Regulator, we managed to pull a limit of big bsb after searching a while. we had a huge cuda that parked within gaf length under our hull. It ate most of the small fish we released. Did anyone else see what appeared to be a 15ft whaler pass chas. 60 and keep going, that guy has crazy balls.
quote:Does anyone know how big these bonita can get? This thing was HUGE!
No offense, but that is a Little Tunny, not a bonito:wink: They get up to about 35 pounds. It’s important to know the difference because little tunny require a federal HMS permit to even remove them from the water. You had one, right:smiley:
Umm, there is no permit needed for " little tunny" which is more properly called a false albacore. This fish is easy to confuse with a skip jack or another close relative that is the bonito. The one you have is a false albacore and has not restrictions at all keep as many as you want there is no size min. I wasn’t sure at first but double checked so I wouldn’t look like and #*$(^. Larry if you would like to double check yourself so that your up to date and not putting out bad info you can look at the dnr book of regs that is free. I also checked the 2012 HMS permit site to see if there was any closers on these fish.
I’m pretty sure it’s in the HMS, and I’m dang sure it’s a little tunny. Will check further though.
quote:Little tunny
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Little tunny
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN 2.3)
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Perciformes
Family: Scombridae
Genus: Euthynnus
Species: E. alletteratus
Binomial name
Euthynnus alletteratus
(Rafinesque, 1810)
The little tunny (Euthynnus alletteratus) is the most common tuna in the Atlantic Ocean. It is found in warm temperate and tropical waters of the Atlantic and the Mediterranean; in the western Atlantic, it ranges from Brazil to the New England states. It is found regularly in offshore and inshore waters, and is classified as a highly migratory species by UNCLOS.[1] Occurring in large schools and weighing up to 36 pounds, it is the smallest member of the tuna Scombridae family, and is one of the finest small game-fish in the Atlantic.
I was there in the 29ft Regulator, we managed to pull a limit of big bsb after searching a while. we had a huge cuda that parked within gaf length under our hull. It ate most of the small fish we released. Did anyone else see what appeared to be a 15ft whaler pass chas. 60 and keep going, that guy has crazy balls.
We saw that guy! He must have really wanted some fish. I guess he made it or we probably would have heard about it, but… dang. I know I probably push the limits sometimes, but going solo in a boat like that in seas like that is waaayyyyy more than I want!
Family: Scombridae, Mackerels view all from this family
Description The little tunny (Euthynnus alletteratus) is the most common tuna in the Atlantic Ocean. It is found in warm temperate and tropical waters of the Atlantic and the Mediterranean; in the western Atlantic, it ranges from Brazil to the New England states. It is found regularly in offshore and inshore waters, and is classified as a highly migratory species by UNCLOS. Occurring in large schools and weighing up to 36 pounds, it is the smallest member of the tuna Scombridae family, and is one of the finest small game-fish in the Atlantic.
Commonly called “false albacore” or “albie”, it resembles the Atlantic bonito, skipjack tuna and species of mackerel. The little tunny feeds primarily on pelagic fish. It is best identified by the dark spots appearing between its pectoral and ventral fins and “worm-like” markings on its back. Commercially, the fish is used as bait for sharks and marlin due to its high oil content and hook retention. It is considered by many to be a trash fish because of its limited nutritional value; there have even been reports of ciguatera poisoning related to its consumption. However, the little tunny is commercially important in many locations including the West Indies. It is marketed fresh, dried, canned, smoked, and frozen. It is sought after as a sport fish due to its line stripping 40 miles per hour (64 km/h) runs and hard fighting ability when hooked. By trolling with lures near reefs, it can be caught on hook and line.
Dimensions Up to 4’ (1.2 m); 27 lbs (12.2 kg).
Habitat Open ocean, Ocean or bay shallows.
Range New England, Mid-Atlantic, Southeast, Florida, Texas.
Q: Do I need a recreational permit to fish for or land tunas, sharks, swordfish, and/or bilfish?
A: Yes, vessel owners/operators who recreationally fish for or retain regulated Atlantic tunas (bluefin, yellowfin, bigeye, albacore, and skipjack), sharks, swordfish, and billfish in Atlantic Federal waters, including the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, must obtain an HMS Angling category permit or a HMS Charter/Headboat permit. However, General category vessels may fish recreationally for HMS so long as they are participating in a registered recreational HMS tournament and fishing under tournament rules. Vessels fishing exclusively in state waters are required to obtain the HMS Angling permit if they wish to keep their regulated tunas (bluefin, yellowfin, bigeye, skipjack, and albacore). Vessel owners/operators should check their state regulations regarding the retention of sharks, swordfish, and/or billfish in state waters.
I know the Bonita is no good to eat, but is the Little Tunney any different as far as table fare?
How do you know that a Bonita is no good to eat? As said before, 99% of the "bonita" around here are little tunny. Everyone has a different pallette. I don't think that there is much in the ocean that one cannot eat. The general concensus is that little tunny is not normally table fare, but that doesn't necessarily mean that you personally would not like to eat it. Heck, I consider squid to be bait, but I've seen lot's of people order fried squid at nice restaurants...
It was a little tunny and was very fun to catch. We had to take it from the water since it hit a chicken rig and had hooks in its tail. It swam off strong with a splash. I’m kicking myself for not taking picture of some of the cooler sized spadefish we got. When DNR checked us at the marina they gave us the thumbs up on fish quality and said they hadn’t seen any that size. Once they realized we were spearfishing they lost interest in checking our cooler. I guess since we were basically grocery shopping they knew we wouldn’t need to have illegal goods on board.
quote:Larry if you would like to double check yourself so that your up to date and not putting out bad info you can look at the dnr book of regs that is free. I also checked the 2012 HMS permit site to see if there was any closers on these fish.
Well, I pride myself on only giving factual information, but in this case it seems I am wrong. Double and triple checked.
I renewed my HMS about month ago and could have sworn that little tunny was included, in that you had to have the permit to posses, but I can find nothing now to back that up
My apologies for the misinformation. At least I got the fish right:smiley:
Someone asked about eating them, not me, but they are a prized commercial fish in a lot of the world.
I know the Bonita is no good to eat, but is the Little Tunney any different as far as table fare?
How do you know that a Bonita is no good to eat? As said before, 99% of the "bonita" around here are little tunny. Everyone has a different pallette. I don't think that there is much in the ocean that one cannot eat. The general concensus is that little tunny is not normally table fare, but that doesn't necessarily mean that you personally would not like to eat it. Heck, I consider squid to be bait, but I've seen lot's of people order fried squid at nice restaurants...
One man’s trash is another man’s treasure!
We already established the difference between the two and it was a simple question. I know that is the way you like to ansewr things, like the “asker” of the question is close minded, but I think most of the population “got” what I was asking! If 95% of the people on here do not like to eat a Bonita, then I am pretty sure that I would not like it also! I thought there was another species that usually comes down in the colder months that are about the same size as the Bonita and little tunny that are considered “good” table fare?
Skipjack! They are delicious. If what I caught was a skipjack, I’d be eating well this week. Maybe I will post some shots of spadefish on the grill since I have no tuna to work with.
