White Marlin

Name:

White Marlin

Scientific Name:

Tetrapturus albidus

Characteristics:

White marlin are large, elongated fish with a large upper jaw that forms a spear which is round in cross-section. They are dark blue to chocolate-brown in color. Although generally considered to be a rare and solitary species relative to other similar fish, white marlin occur in small groups consisting of several individuals.

Fish Habitat:

White marlin preferred habitat is deep blue water over 100m (330 feet). The species is usually migrates to high latitudes in the warm season. They reproduce while in the subtropics; spawning in early summer in deep, oceanic waters.

Fish Habits:

White marlin feed on a variety of schooling baitfish including sardine, herring and other clupeoids; squid; mackerel; scad; saury; and smaller tuna-like fishes such as frigate and bullet tuna.

Like their close relatives the striped marlin, and sailfish, white marlin will often group together to corral schooling baitfish into a tight group for feeding purposes, a phenomenon commonly referred to as "balling bait".

Adult Size:

White marlin may reach a potential maximum size of around 220 lb (100 kg). The International Game Fish Association all-tackle record is held by a Brazilian fish of 181 lb. Most rod-caught white marlin are far smaller than this and any white marlin in the 100 lb (45 kg) class is considered an excellent catch.

Fishing Tactics:

Angling destinations

Brazil

Brazil is home to most of the largest white marlin in the IGFA record books. Areas such as the Charlotte Bank see large numbers of white marlin as well as blue marlin, sailfish and other blue-water gamefish such as tuna and dorado.

United States

North Carolina

Cape Hatteras, Oregon Inlet and other fishing areas along the coast of North Carolina benefit from the close proximity of the Gulf Stream. White marlin are often targeted by the skilled charter crews and recreational sport fisherman that fish this area, with August and September often providing some exceptional fishing.

Trolling with natural baits, predominantly ballyhoo, is the most effective method and rigging and fishing techniques have been continuously refined and perfected over the years by the many skilled crewmen that work these waters.

Maryland, Virginia and Delaware

From approximately mid-July onwards, white marlin as well as the other species of Gulf Stream gamefish such as dolphinfish, yellowfin and bigeye tuna start showing up in the continental shelf canyons offshore of Maryland, Virginia and Delaware.

The Jack Spot, an area of bottom structure 22 miles south of Ocean City, Maryland, was for many years the most famed white marlin location in the United States. White marlin were first caught here as early as 1934 and in 1939, 171 whites were boated in a single day (July 29th) here. The years 1969-1971 saw some exceptional white marlin fishing with over 2,000 fish being caught or released per year.

Ocean City is now home to one of the East Coast's premier marlin tournaments, the White Marlin Open.

Venezuela

The La Guaira Bank off the coast of Venezuela hosts great concentrations of white marlin in season. White marlin can be encountered year round but autumn is considered the best time to target white marlin in Venezuelan waters.

Venezuelan anglers such as Aquiles Garcia, Rafael Arnal, Ronnie Morrison and Ruben Jaen honed their techniques and tackle in these fish-rich waters and their experiences have contributed to many light-tackle billfishing techniques commonly used today.

Distribution:

White marlin are distributed throughout the tropical and seasonally in temperate oceanic waters of the Atlantic Ocean.

Where environmental conditions (temperature, water colour and clarity) are favourable, white marlin will often forage in shallow water well inshore of the continental shelf, taking advantage of the abundant baitfish resources often found in these areas.