MarcoIsland.com :: Fish Guide

Fish Guide

Whether you prefer the thrill of hooking up offshore or the more relaxed pace of fishing among the scenic back waters of the Ten Thousand Islands, the Marco Island area is mecca for anglers year-round. Among the local favorite catches are the wily snook, tarpon, redfish, pompano, cobia, grouper, jack cravelle and more. Expert guided charter services are available, or you can lease a boat and chart your own course.

The opportunities for fun on the water never stop on Marco Island. In addition to boating and fishing, you can enjoy the easy-going pace of kayaking or sailing, or take the more adventurous track and experience the thrills of parasailing and jet skis.

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Name	Description	Details
African Pompano	Body is deep and compressed. Coloration is metalic -blue above, silvery below. Snout is blunt. Pelvic fins are longer than the maxilla. Second dorsal and anal fins are falcate.	View Details »
Almaco Jack	deep-bodied amberjack; sometimes darker in coloration; front of soft dorsal and of anal fins high and elongated; body more flattened than banded rudderfish or greater amberjack; no scutes.	View Details »
Amshad	color of back green or greenish blue with metallic lustre; silvery sides, white underneath (colors darken when fish enters fresh water to spawn); belly with scutes forming distinct keel.	View Details »
Atlantic Bumper	silvery to golden below; anal and caudal fins yellowish; conspicuous black saddle on caudal peduncle and small black area at edge of opercle; lower profile more arched than upper profile; lateral line strongly arched toward front.	View Details »
Atlantic Croaker	inferior mouth; 3 to 5 pairs of small barbels on chin; silver-gray or bronze body with dark oblique wavy bars or lines; iridescent especially on head; preopercle strongly serrated.	View Details »
Atlantic Spadefish	silvery with 4 to 6 black vertical bands on each side which sometimes become obscure in larger fish; deep, flattened body; separated first and second dorsal fins; concave caudal fin; anterior rays of second dorsal fin and anal fin elongated.	View Details »
Atlantic Thread Herring	back dark blue/gray, sides silvery, belly white; small head	View Details »
Ballyhoo	tip of lower jaw and upper lobe of caudal fin orange-red; pectoral fin short; tip of pelvic fin extends past beginning of dorsal fin; dorsal and anal fins unscaled.	View Details »
Banded Rubberfish	fish less than 11 inches long have dark band from eye to first dorsal fin and six prominent bars on body; larger fish are bluish, greenish, or brown.	View Details »
Bank Sea Bass	pale olive or brassy-brown in color with indistinct black blotches that form vertical barrings (the blotch above pectoral fin darker); wavy blue lines on head; lips purplish-blue; caudal fin tri-lobed on adults; edge of nape unscaled.	View Details »
Bay Anchovy	body relatively deep; head short; snout very short, only slightly overhanging mouth; silvery stripe narrow, often faint or absent toward front; stripe fades after death; body grayish, with few melanophores above; dorsal fin far back.	View Details »
Bigeye Scad	eye very large – diameter greater than snout length; no detached dorsal and anal finlets; two widely separated fleshly tabs on inside of rear edge of gill chamber; scutes present only on rear part of lateral line.	View Details »
Black Drum	high arched back; 10 to 14 pairs of chin barbels; gray or black colored body in adults; young have 4 to 6 vertical bars; has cobblestonelike teeth capable of crushing oysters; scales large.	View Details »
Black Grouper	Description: olive or gray body coloration with black blotches and brassy spots; gently rounded preopercle; (see gag, next page) Similar fish: gag, M. microlepis; yellowfin grouper, M. venenosa.	View Details »
Black Nose Shark	distinctive dusky smudge at snout tip (more prominent in young); no dark tips on fins; pale olive-gray above, whitish below; 1st dorsal fin begins above rear corner of pectoral fin; no mid dorsal ridge; upper teeth very asymmetrical.	View Details »
Black Sea Bass	basic color dark brown or black; dorsal fin has rows and stripes of white on black; large males have iridescent blue and ebony markings, and fatty hump in front of dorsal fin.	View Details »
Black Tip Shark	distinctive dusky smudge at snout tip (more prominent in young); no dark tips on fins; pale olive-gray above, whitish below; 1st dorsal fin begins above rear corner of pectoral fin; no mid dorsal ridge; upper teeth very asymmetrical.	View Details »
Blackfin Snapper	color generally red, with yellowish caudal, anal, and pelvic fins; distinctive and prominent dark comma-shaped blotch at the base of the pectoral fins, which gives the fish its common name.	View Details »
Blackfin Tuna	pectoral fin moderately long, reaching point below beginning of 2nd dorsal fin; 2nd dorsal fin dusky; all finlets dusky, with white edges; dorsal finlets sometimes turn yellowish at base after death.	View Details »
Blue Marlin	color cobalt blue on top shading to silvery white on bottom; upper jaw elongated in form of a spear; dorsal fin pointed at front end; pectoral fin and anal fin pointed.	View Details »
Bluefish	color blue or greenish blue on back, sides silvery; mouth large; teeth prominent, sharp, and compressed; dorsal and anal fins nearly the same size; scales small; lateral line almost straight.	View Details »
Bonefish	silvery color with bluish or greenish back; slender, round body; snout long, conical, aiming downward and overhanging lower jaw.	View Details »
Cero(Mackerel)	color of back iridescent bluish green; sides silvery; yellow spots forming lines above and below a bronze stripe from pectoral fin to base of the tail; front of first dorsal is bluish black; lateral line curves gradually to base of caudal fin.	View Details »
Cobia	long, slim fish with broad depressed head; lower jaw projects past upper jaw; dark lateral stripe extends through eye to tail; first dorsal fin comprised of 7 to 9 free spines.	View Details »
Crevalle Jack	color bluish-green to greenish-gold back and silvery or yellowish belly; soft dorsal and anal fins almost identical in size; prominent black spot on operculum (gill cover); black spot at the base of each pectoral fin; no scales on throat.	View Details »
Cubera Snapper	color dark brown or gray, may have a reddish tinge; broad-based triangular tooth patch on roof of mouth without a posterior extension; despite its specific name, which translates to “blue-fin,” the fins have only a slight tinge of blue.	View Details »
Dog Snapper	color brown with a bronze tinge, lighter on sides; canine teeth very sharp, one pair notably enlarged,	View Details »
Dolphin/Mahi-Mahi	bright greenish blue above, yellow on sides, with capability of flashing purple, chartreuse, and a wide range of other colors; body tapers sharply from head to tail; irregular blue or golden blotches scattered over sides;	View Details »
Fantail Mullet	color olive green with blue tints on back, shading to silvery sides, white below; anal and pelvic fins yellowish; dark blotch at base of pectoral fin; inverted V-shaped mouth; insertion of second dorsal over that of the anal fin.	View Details »
Fatsnook	deeper body than other snooks; yellow-brown to greenbrown above silvery on sides; black lateral line extends onto tail; mouth reaches to or beyond center of eyes; usually no dusky outer edge of all snook.	View Details »
Florida Pompano	greenish gray on back, shading to silvery sides; fish in dark waters showing yellow on throat, pelvic, and anal fins; deep flattened body with small mouth; no scutes; 22 to 27 soft dorsal rays.	View Details »
Gafftopsail Catfish	bluish above; silvery below; dorsal and pectoral fins with long, fleshy filaments on spines; barbel at cornor of mouth flattened, bandlike, and very elongate, sometimes reaching anal fin; only 2 barbels on chin.	View Details »
Gag	brownish gray in color with dark worm-like markings on sides; strong serrated spur at bottom margin of preopercle, less noticeable in large specimens; fins dark, with anal and caudal having white margin; often confused with black grouper.	View Details »
Grassporgy	pale tan to silvery; dark olive above; dark bar across nape extends through eye to corner of mouth; dark blotches on body, in about 5 vertical and 4 horizontal series.	View Details »
Gray Snapper	color dark brown or gray with reddish or orange spots in rows along the sides; dark horizontal band from snout through eye (young only); two conspicuous canine teeth at front of upper jaw.	View Details »
Gray Triggerfish	entirely olive-gray; dorsal and anal fins marbled; caudal fin lobes elongate in large adults; one or more enlarged scales behind gill opening; 26 to 29 dorsal fin rays; 23 to 26 anal fin rays.	View Details »
Great Barracuda	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.	View Details »
Greater Amberjack	dark stripe (variably present) extends from nose to in front of dorsal fin and “lights up” when fish is in feeding mode; no scutes; soft dorsal base less than twice the length of the anal fin base.	View Details »
Gulf Flounder	body color brown, its shade depending on color of bottom, with numerous spots and blotches; 3 prominent eye-like spots forming a triangle; one spot on lateral line, one above, one below; numerous white spots scattered over body and fins.	View Details »
Gulf Kingfish	similar to the Southern Kingfish but caudal fin has a blackish tip; side silvery, without dark marks; tip of spinous dorsal fin often dusky; lining of gill cavity silvery; scales on chest noticeably smaller than those on side.	View Details »
Gulf Menhaden	to 18" oval, deep and compressed; blue or green, sometimes bluish-brown above; sides and belly silvery, fins yellowish; distinct humeral spot often followed by several rows of smaller spots.	View Details »
Hammerhead	fifth gill slit shorter than 4 preceding ones and located posterior to pectoral fin base; flattened head extending to hammerlike lobes on each side; distinct indentation of the front margin of the head at its midpoint.	View Details »
Hardhead Catfish	brownish to gray-green; white to yellowish below; fin spines with no fleshy filaments; barbel at corner of mouth not very flattened and shorter than head; four barbels on chin.	View Details »
Hogfish	body deep, strongly compressed; color varies, but never bicolored; usually reddish, sometimes bright brick red; soft dorsal fin with a large dark spot at base; entire top of head nape purplish brown in large males.	View Details »
Horse-eye Jack	silvery, iridescent, sometimes with brassy highlights; body extremely compressed and deep, platelike; front of head very steep; lobes at front of soft dorsal and anal fins very long; pelvic fins small; lateral line arched toward front.	View Details »
Jewfish	head and fins covered with small black spots; irregular dark vertical bars present on the sides of body; pectoral and caudal fin rounded; first dorsal fin shorter than and not separated from second dorsal; adults huge, up to 800 pounds; eyes small.	View Details »
Jolthead Porgy	generally silvery to brassy, with a bluish cast; front of head brown, with blue line along lower rim of eye; a whitish stripe below eye, and another between eye and mouth; corner of mouth orange.	View Details »
King Mackerel	color of back iridescent bluish green, sides silvery; streamlined body with tapered head; no black pigment on front of the first dorsal fin; lateral line starts high and drops sharply below the second dorsal fin.	View Details »
Knobbed Porgy	body deep; front profile very steep; nape projects strongly in large adults; body generally silvery, with a rosy cast; cheek and snout dark purplish gray, with many bronze spots; large blue spot at axil of pectoral fin.	View Details »
Ladyfish	terminal mouth; slender body; small scales; last dorsal ray not elonged; head small and pointed.	View Details »
Lane Snapper	color silvery-pink to reddish with short, irregular pink and yellow lines on its sides; diffuse black spot, about as large as the eye; the dorsal fin centered above the lateral line; outer margin of caudal fin blackish.	View Details »
Leather Jacket	body silvery, bluish above; fins yellow; rear parts of dorsal and anal fins consist of a series of finlets; spinous dorsal fin has 5 well-developed, unconnected spines; lateral line nearly straight; scales tiny, embedded; skin appears smooth.	View Details »
Lesser Amberjack	olive green or brownish back and silver sides; dark band (variably present) extends backward and upward from eye; juveniles have split or wavy bars on sides; proportionately larger eye and deeper body than greater amberjack.	View Details »
Little Tunny	diagonal, sometimes wavy, dark bars on bare areas on each side of back; 4 to 5 dark spots below pectoral fin; no dark stripes on belly; dorsal fins connected at base; pectoral fin short.	View Details »
Littlehead Porgy	similar to the knobbed porgy, but snout and cheek bluish gray, with many wavy, dark blue lines; areas between lines sometimes brassy.	View Details »
Longbill Spearfish	color of body dark blue, shading to silvery, white underneath; dorsal fin bluish, others brown-black; two dorsal fins, the first lengthy, its front forming a peak; two anal fins.	View Details »
Lookdown	silvery, iridescent, sometimes with brassy highlights; body extremely compressed and deep, platelike; front of head very steep.	View Details »
Mahogany Snapper	color grayish-olive with a reddish tinge; conspicuous dark spot, about the size of the eye, below the soft dorsal fin, 1/4 to 1/2 of it below the lateral line; the large eye and caudal fin are bright red.	View Details »
Mutton Snapper	color olive green on back and upper sides, all fins below the lateral line having reddish tinge; bright blue line below eye, following contour of operculum; anal fin pointed; small black spot below dorsal fin; V-shaped tooth patch on roof of mouth.	View Details »
Nassau Grouper	color light background with brown or red-brown bars on sides; stripe in shape of tuning fork on forehead.	View Details »
Palometa	gray to blue-green on top of head and along the back; bright silvery sides; yellow on breast; elongated dorsal and anal fins, dusky or black with bluish edges; deep body, with four narrow bars high on the sides.	View Details »
Permit	color gray, dark or iridescent blue above, shading to silvery sides, in dark waters showing golden tints around breast.	View Details »
Pigfish	gray, often with a bluish cast; many bronze to yellowish spots, dashes, and other small markings; mouth small, ending below front nostril.	View Details »
Pinfish	small mouth with incisor-like teeth; distinctive black spot behind the gill cover; body bluish-silver with blue and orangeyellow horizontal stripes, yellow fins.	View Details »
Queen Snapper	color of back and upper sides red, lower sides; silvery body long and slender; dorsal fin distinctly notched; large eyes; caudal fin deeply forked; no dark lateral spot.	View Details »
Red Drum	chin without barbels; copper-bronze body, lighter shade in clear waters; one to many spots at base of tail (rarely no spots); mouth horizontal and opening downward; scales large.	View Details »
Red Grouper	color brownish red; lining of mouth scarletorange; blotches on sides in unorganized pattern; second spine of dorsal fin longer than others; pectoral fins longer than pelvic fins; squaredoff tail.	View Details »
Red Porgy	the only American porgy with a rear nostril that is round (not slit-like); head and body silvery red, with many tiny blue spots. Size: to 91 cm (3 ft.).	View Details »
Red Snapper	color pinkish red over entire body, whitish below; long triangular snout; anal fin sharply pointed; no dark lateral spot; red eye.	View Details »
Rock Sea Bass	color olive-bronze, with dark blotches forming vertical bars; dark black blotch on middle of dorsalfin base; tip of lower jaw purplish; bright blue and orange stripes and markings on head and fins; fully scaled nape; tail tri-lobed in adults.	View Details »
Round Scad	long, fusiform; greenish-blue fading to silver on sides, belly white; narrow, yellowish stripe from head to caudal peduncle.	View Details »
Sailfish	color dark blue on top, brown-blue laterally, silvery white underbelly; upper jaw elongated in form of spear; first dorsal greatly enlarged in the form of a sail, with many black spots,	View Details »
Sand Bar Shark	snout broadly rounded and short; first dorsal fin triangular and very high; poorly developed dermal ridge between dorsal fins; brown or gray in color with white underside; upper and lower teeth finely serrated.	View Details »
Sand Perch	body and dorsal fins with many dark brown bars and alternating orange and blue horizontal lines; head with many blue lines; preopercular spines very well developed; grouped in 2 radiating clusters with a deep notch between them.	View Details »
Sand Sea Trout	pale body color, yellow above, silver to white below; one or two prominent canine teeth usually at tip of upper jaw; inside of mouth yellow; no well-defined black spots on back; 10 to 12 soft rays in anal fin; no chin barbels.	View Details »
Scaled Sardine	solid back with dark streaks, usually single small dark spot at upper edge of opercule and sometimes one at shoulder.	View Details »
Scamp	color light gray or brown; large adults with elongated caudal-fin rays; reddish-brown spots on sides that tend to be grouped into lines; some yellow around corners of mouth.	View Details »
Schoolmaster	color olive gray on upper sides with yellow tinge, sometimes with reddish tinge around head; long triangular snout.	View Details »
Sheepshead	basic silvery color, with 5 or 6 distinct vertical black bars on sides, not always the same on both sides.	View Details »
Silk Snapper	back and upper sides pinkish red, shading to silvery sides with undulating yellow lines; pectoral fins pale yellow; back edge of caudal fin blackish; anal fin pointed; no dark lateral spot; yellow eye.	View Details »
Silver Perch	color silvery with yellowish fins; no spots; no chin barbels; no prominent canine teeth at tip of upper jaw; preopercle finely serrated; 5 to 6 chin pores; mouth terminal.	View Details »
Silver Sea Trout	pale straw-colored above, silvery sides and white below; no distinctive pigmentation, although faint diagonal lines may be present on upper body.	View Details »
Snook	distinct black lateral line; high, divided dorsal fin; sloping forehead; large mouth, protruding lower jaw; grows much larger than other snooks; pelvic fin yellow.	View Details »
Southern Kingfish	grayish brown above, with silvery sides: 7 to 8 diagonal dusky bars or blotches on each side, but these marks are obscure and never form V-shaped marks on side; scales on chest about same size as those on body.	View Details »
Spanish Mackerel	color of back green, shading to silver on sides, golden yellow irregular spots above and below lateral line; front of dorsal fin black; lateral line curves gently to base of tail.	View Details »
Spanish Sardine	back bluish gray, sometimes greenish; sides silvery to brassy; slender body.	View Details »
Spot	the only drum in our region with a distinctly forked caudal fin; bluish to brownish above; brassy on side; silvery to white below; distinct brownish spot on shoulder; 12 to 15 narrow, diagonal dark lines on upper body.	View Details »
Spottail Pinfish	dark saddle on caudal peduncle sometimes forms a complete ring around peduncle in adults; eight faint bars on body, alternately long and short.	View Details »
Spotted Seatrout	INSHORE and/or NEARSHORE over grass, sand, and sandy mud bottoms; move into slow-moving or still, deep waters in cold weather.	View Details »
Stingray	disk almost a perfect rhombus, with pointed corners; ventral finfold on tail long and relatively high, dorsal finfold rows near shoulder; disk usually uniform dark brown above, grayer in young.	View Details »
Striped Anchovy	snout length somewhat less than eye diameter; silver stripe on body narrow – width less than eye diameter or snout length throughout; back greenish; some yellowish about the head.	View Details »
Striped Mojarra	body dark olive above; tan to silvery on side, often with a metallic sheen; conspicuous blackish stripe along center of each scale row, except toward belly.	View Details »
Swordfish	color of back variable, black, grayish blue, brown, metallic purple, or bronze; sides dusky; underbelly dirty white; long flat, sword-like upper jaw;	View Details »
Swordspine Snook	slightly concave; prominent lateral line outlined in black (not solid), extends through caudal fin; color yellowgreen to brown-green above, silvery below; giant second anal spine, hence the name; largest scales of all snook.	View Details »
Tarpon	Last ray of dorsal fin extended into long filament; one dorsal fin; back dark blue to green or greenish black, shading into bright silver on the sides; may be brownish gold in estuarine waters; huge scales; mouth large and points upward.	View Details »
Tarpon Snook	7 anal fin rays (others have 6); lower jaw curves upward; compressed body; prominent black lateral line extends through tail; tips of pelvic fins reach beyond anus.	View Details »
Tomate	bright orange mouth lining; light colored; gray to tan on back; yellow to brown stripe from head to base of tail fin; black blotch at base of tail fin fades away in larger specimens.	View Details »
Tripletail	almost black; pale olive band across base of caudal fin; broad, dark brown bar from eye across cheek below corner of preopercle.	View Details »
Vermillion Snapper	back and upper sides olive to bluish with yellow spots; lower sides and belly with alternating narrow, longitudinal pink and yellow stripes; prominent mid lateral yellow stripe begins at mouth and runs to tail.	View Details »
Wahoo	body slender; elongate jaws form a pointed beak; dark bluish above, with about 30 dark wavy bars; whitish below 1st dorsal fin long and low, with 21 to 27 spines; no gill rakers.	View Details »
Warsaw Grouper	uniformly dark brown, with no distinctive markings; dorsal fin with 10 spines; second spine very long (much longer than third); caudal fin squared-off; rear nostril larger than front nostril.	View Details »
Weakfish	dark olive or blue-green back; sides covered in tones of blue, purple, lavender, gold, and copper; irregular diagonal rows of vaguelydefined dark spots appear above the lateral line.	View Details »
White Grunt	body color light bluish-gray, head with horizontal blue stripes, white underbelly; black blotch on preopercle; margin of each scale bronze; large bright orange mouth; scales above lateral line larger than scales below lateral line.	View Details »
White Marlin	color of body dark blue to chocolate brown, shading to slivery white underbelly; noticeable spots on dorsal fin; upper jaw elongated in shape of a spear.	View Details »
Yellow Menhaden	silvery, with a greenish or bluish back; fins golden yellow; a single dark shoulder spot; scales on back noticeably smaller than those on sides and difficult to count – about 60-70 rows across middle of side; 27-30 (usually 28-29) ventral scutes.	View Details »
Yellowfin Grouper	color highly greenish olive or bright red with longitudinal rows or darker black blotches over entire fish; outer one-third of pectoral fins bright yellow; lower parts of larger fish with small bright red spots.	View Details »
Yellowfin Tuna	pectoral fin moderately long, reaching point below beginning of 2nd dorsal fin; 2nd dorsal fin and all finlets yellow; no white rear edge on caudal fin; golden stripe on side.	View Details »
Yellowmouth Grouper	color tan or brown with darker spots; spots, or a network of spots, fused into lines; distinct yellow wash behind the jaws; yellow around the eyes; outer edges of fins yellowish.	View Details »
Yellowtail Snapper	Description: back and upper sides olive to bluish with yellow spots; lower sides and belly with alternating narrow, longitudinal pink and yellow stripes; prominent mid lateral yellow stripe begins at mouth and runs to tail.	View Details »

Name

Description

Details

African Pompano

Body is deep and compressed. Coloration is metalic -blue above, silvery below. Snout is blunt. Pelvic fins are longer than the maxilla. Second dorsal and anal fins are falcate.

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Almaco Jack

deep-bodied amberjack; sometimes darker in coloration; front of soft dorsal and of anal fins high and elongated; body more flattened than banded rudderfish or greater amberjack; no scutes.

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Amshad

color of back green or greenish blue with metallic lustre; silvery sides, white underneath (colors darken when fish enters fresh water to spawn); belly with scutes forming distinct keel.

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Atlantic Bumper

silvery to golden below; anal and caudal fins yellowish; conspicuous black saddle on caudal peduncle and small black area at edge of opercle; lower profile more arched than upper profile; lateral line strongly arched toward front.

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Atlantic Croaker

inferior mouth; 3 to 5 pairs of small barbels on chin; silver-gray or bronze body with dark oblique wavy bars or lines; iridescent especially on head; preopercle strongly serrated.

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Atlantic Spadefish

silvery with 4 to 6 black vertical bands on each side which sometimes become obscure in larger fish; deep, flattened body; separated first and second dorsal fins; concave caudal fin; anterior rays of second dorsal fin and anal fin elongated.

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Atlantic Thread Herring

back dark blue/gray, sides silvery, belly white; small head

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Ballyhoo

tip of lower jaw and upper lobe of caudal fin orange-red; pectoral fin short; tip of pelvic fin extends past beginning of dorsal fin; dorsal and anal fins unscaled.

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Banded Rubberfish

fish less than 11 inches long have dark band from eye to first dorsal fin and six prominent bars on body; larger fish are bluish, greenish, or brown.

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Bank Sea Bass

pale olive or brassy-brown in color with indistinct black blotches that form vertical barrings (the blotch above pectoral fin darker); wavy blue lines on head; lips purplish-blue; caudal fin tri-lobed on adults; edge of nape unscaled.

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Bay Anchovy

body relatively deep; head short; snout very short, only slightly overhanging mouth; silvery stripe narrow, often faint or absent toward front; stripe fades after death; body grayish, with few melanophores above; dorsal fin far back.

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Bigeye Scad

eye very large – diameter greater than snout length; no detached dorsal and anal finlets; two widely separated fleshly tabs on inside of rear edge of gill chamber; scutes present only on rear part of lateral line.

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Black Drum

high arched back; 10 to 14 pairs of chin barbels; gray or black colored body in adults; young have 4 to 6 vertical bars; has cobblestonelike teeth capable of crushing oysters; scales large.

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Black Grouper

Description: olive or gray body coloration with black blotches and brassy spots; gently rounded preopercle; (see gag, next page) Similar fish: gag, M. microlepis; yellowfin grouper, M. venenosa.

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Black Nose Shark

distinctive dusky smudge at snout tip (more prominent in young); no dark tips on fins; pale olive-gray above, whitish below; 1st dorsal fin begins above rear corner of pectoral fin; no mid dorsal ridge; upper teeth very asymmetrical.

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Black Sea Bass

basic color dark brown or black; dorsal fin has rows and stripes of white on black; large males have iridescent blue and ebony markings, and fatty hump in front of dorsal fin.

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Black Tip Shark

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Blackfin Snapper

color generally red, with yellowish caudal, anal, and pelvic fins; distinctive and prominent dark comma-shaped blotch at the base of the pectoral fins, which gives the fish its common name.

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Blackfin Tuna

pectoral fin moderately long, reaching point below beginning of 2nd dorsal fin; 2nd dorsal fin dusky; all finlets dusky, with white edges; dorsal finlets sometimes turn yellowish at base after death.

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Blue Marlin

color cobalt blue on top shading to silvery white on bottom; upper jaw elongated in form of a spear; dorsal fin pointed at front end; pectoral fin and anal fin pointed.

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Bluefish

color blue or greenish blue on back, sides silvery; mouth large; teeth prominent, sharp, and compressed; dorsal and anal fins nearly the same size; scales small; lateral line almost straight.

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Bonefish

silvery color with bluish or greenish back; slender, round body; snout long, conical, aiming downward and overhanging lower jaw.

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Cero(Mackerel)

color of back iridescent bluish green; sides silvery; yellow spots forming lines above and below a bronze stripe from pectoral fin to base of the tail; front of first dorsal is bluish black; lateral line curves gradually to base of caudal fin.

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Cobia

long, slim fish with broad depressed head; lower jaw projects past upper jaw; dark lateral stripe extends through eye to tail; first dorsal fin comprised of 7 to 9 free spines.

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Crevalle Jack

color bluish-green to greenish-gold back and silvery or yellowish belly; soft dorsal and anal fins almost identical in size; prominent black spot on operculum (gill cover); black spot at the base of each pectoral fin; no scales on throat.

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Cubera Snapper

color dark brown or gray, may have a reddish tinge; broad-based triangular tooth patch on roof of mouth without a posterior extension; despite its specific name, which translates to “blue-fin,” the fins have only a slight tinge of blue.

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Dog Snapper

color brown with a bronze tinge, lighter on sides; canine teeth very sharp, one pair notably enlarged,

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Dolphin/Mahi-Mahi

bright greenish blue above, yellow on sides, with capability of flashing purple, chartreuse, and a wide range of other colors; body tapers sharply from head to tail; irregular blue or golden blotches scattered over sides;

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Fantail Mullet

color olive green with blue tints on back, shading to silvery sides, white below; anal and pelvic fins yellowish; dark blotch at base of pectoral fin; inverted V-shaped mouth; insertion of second dorsal over that of the anal fin.

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Fatsnook

deeper body than other snooks; yellow-brown to greenbrown above silvery on sides; black lateral line extends onto tail; mouth reaches to or beyond center of eyes; usually no dusky outer edge of all snook.

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Florida Pompano

greenish gray on back, shading to silvery sides; fish in dark waters showing yellow on throat, pelvic, and anal fins; deep flattened body with small mouth; no scutes; 22 to 27 soft dorsal rays.

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Gafftopsail Catfish

bluish above; silvery below; dorsal and pectoral fins with long, fleshy filaments on spines; barbel at cornor of mouth flattened, bandlike, and very elongate, sometimes reaching anal fin; only 2 barbels on chin.

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Gag

brownish gray in color with dark worm-like markings on sides; strong serrated spur at bottom margin of preopercle, less noticeable in large specimens; fins dark, with anal and caudal having white margin; often confused with black grouper.

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Grassporgy

pale tan to silvery; dark olive above; dark bar across nape extends through eye to corner of mouth; dark blotches on body, in about 5 vertical and 4 horizontal series.

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Gray Snapper

color dark brown or gray with reddish or orange spots in rows along the sides; dark horizontal band from snout through eye (young only); two conspicuous canine teeth at front of upper jaw.

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Gray Triggerfish

entirely olive-gray; dorsal and anal fins marbled; caudal fin lobes elongate in large adults; one or more enlarged scales behind gill opening; 26 to 29 dorsal fin rays; 23 to 26 anal fin rays.

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Great Barracuda

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.

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Greater Amberjack

dark stripe (variably present) extends from nose to in front of dorsal fin and “lights up” when fish is in feeding mode; no scutes; soft dorsal base less than twice the length of the anal fin base.

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Gulf Flounder

body color brown, its shade depending on color of bottom, with numerous spots and blotches; 3 prominent eye-like spots forming a triangle; one spot on lateral line, one above, one below; numerous white spots scattered over body and fins.

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Gulf Kingfish

similar to the Southern Kingfish but caudal fin has a blackish tip; side silvery, without dark marks; tip of spinous dorsal fin often dusky; lining of gill cavity silvery; scales on chest noticeably smaller than those on side.

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Gulf Menhaden

to 18" oval, deep and compressed; blue or green, sometimes bluish-brown above; sides and belly silvery, fins yellowish; distinct humeral spot often followed by several rows of smaller spots.

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Hammerhead

fifth gill slit shorter than 4 preceding ones and located posterior to pectoral fin base; flattened head extending to hammerlike lobes on each side; distinct indentation of the front margin of the head at its midpoint.

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Hardhead Catfish

brownish to gray-green; white to yellowish below; fin spines with no fleshy filaments; barbel at corner of mouth not very flattened and shorter than head; four barbels on chin.

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Hogfish

body deep, strongly compressed; color varies, but never bicolored; usually reddish, sometimes bright brick red; soft dorsal fin with a large dark spot at base; entire top of head nape purplish brown in large males.

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Horse-eye Jack

silvery, iridescent, sometimes with brassy highlights; body extremely compressed and deep, platelike; front of head very steep; lobes at front of soft dorsal and anal fins very long; pelvic fins small; lateral line arched toward front.

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Jewfish

head and fins covered with small black spots; irregular dark vertical bars present on the sides of body; pectoral and caudal fin rounded; first dorsal fin shorter than and not separated from second dorsal; adults huge, up to 800 pounds; eyes small.

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Jolthead Porgy

generally silvery to brassy, with a bluish cast; front of head brown, with blue line along lower rim of eye; a whitish stripe below eye, and another between eye and mouth; corner of mouth orange.

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King Mackerel

color of back iridescent bluish green, sides silvery; streamlined body with tapered head; no black pigment on front of the first dorsal fin; lateral line starts high and drops sharply below the second dorsal fin.

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Knobbed Porgy

body deep; front profile very steep; nape projects strongly in large adults; body generally silvery, with a rosy cast; cheek and snout dark purplish gray, with many bronze spots; large blue spot at axil of pectoral fin.

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Ladyfish

terminal mouth; slender body; small scales; last dorsal ray not elonged; head small and pointed.

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Lane Snapper

color silvery-pink to reddish with short, irregular pink and yellow lines on its sides; diffuse black spot, about as large as the eye; the dorsal fin centered above the lateral line; outer margin of caudal fin blackish.

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Leather Jacket

body silvery, bluish above; fins yellow; rear parts of dorsal and anal fins consist of a series of finlets; spinous dorsal fin has 5 well-developed, unconnected spines; lateral line nearly straight; scales tiny, embedded; skin appears smooth.

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Lesser Amberjack

olive green or brownish back and silver sides; dark band (variably present) extends backward and upward from eye; juveniles have split or wavy bars on sides; proportionately larger eye and deeper body than greater amberjack.

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Little Tunny

diagonal, sometimes wavy, dark bars on bare areas on each side of back; 4 to 5 dark spots below pectoral fin; no dark stripes on belly; dorsal fins connected at base; pectoral fin short.

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Littlehead Porgy

similar to the knobbed porgy, but snout and cheek bluish gray, with many wavy, dark blue lines; areas between lines sometimes brassy.

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Longbill Spearfish

color of body dark blue, shading to silvery, white underneath; dorsal fin bluish, others brown-black; two dorsal fins, the first lengthy, its front forming a peak; two anal fins.

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Lookdown

silvery, iridescent, sometimes with brassy highlights; body extremely compressed and deep, platelike; front of head very steep.

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Mahogany Snapper

color grayish-olive with a reddish tinge; conspicuous dark spot, about the size of the eye, below the soft dorsal fin, 1/4 to 1/2 of it below the lateral line; the large eye and caudal fin are bright red.

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Mutton Snapper

color olive green on back and upper sides, all fins below the lateral line having reddish tinge; bright blue line below eye, following contour of operculum; anal fin pointed; small black spot below dorsal fin; V-shaped tooth patch on roof of mouth.

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Nassau Grouper

color light background with brown or red-brown bars on sides; stripe in shape of tuning fork on forehead.

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Palometa

gray to blue-green on top of head and along the back; bright silvery sides; yellow on breast; elongated dorsal and anal fins, dusky or black with bluish edges; deep body, with four narrow bars high on the sides.

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Permit

color gray, dark or iridescent blue above, shading to silvery sides, in dark waters showing golden tints around breast.

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Pigfish

gray, often with a bluish cast; many bronze to yellowish spots, dashes, and other small markings; mouth small, ending below front nostril.

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Pinfish

small mouth with incisor-like teeth; distinctive black spot behind the gill cover; body bluish-silver with blue and orangeyellow horizontal stripes, yellow fins.

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Queen Snapper

color of back and upper sides red, lower sides; silvery body long and slender; dorsal fin distinctly notched; large eyes; caudal fin deeply forked; no dark lateral spot.

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Red Drum

chin without barbels; copper-bronze body, lighter shade in clear waters; one to many spots at base of tail (rarely no spots); mouth horizontal and opening downward; scales large.

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Red Grouper

color brownish red; lining of mouth scarletorange; blotches on sides in unorganized pattern; second spine of dorsal fin longer than others; pectoral fins longer than pelvic fins; squaredoff tail.

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Red Porgy

the only American porgy with a rear nostril that is round (not slit-like); head and body silvery red, with many tiny blue spots. Size: to 91 cm (3 ft.).

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Red Snapper

color pinkish red over entire body, whitish below; long triangular snout; anal fin sharply pointed; no dark lateral spot; red eye.

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Rock Sea Bass

color olive-bronze, with dark blotches forming vertical bars; dark black blotch on middle of dorsalfin base; tip of lower jaw purplish; bright blue and orange stripes and markings on head and fins; fully scaled nape; tail tri-lobed in adults.

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Round Scad

long, fusiform; greenish-blue fading to silver on sides, belly white; narrow, yellowish stripe from head to caudal peduncle.

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Sailfish

color dark blue on top, brown-blue laterally, silvery white underbelly; upper jaw elongated in form of spear; first dorsal greatly enlarged in the form of a sail, with many black spots,

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Sand Bar Shark

snout broadly rounded and short; first dorsal fin triangular and very high; poorly developed dermal ridge between dorsal fins; brown or gray in color with white underside; upper and lower teeth finely serrated.

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Sand Perch

body and dorsal fins with many dark brown bars and alternating orange and blue horizontal lines; head with many blue lines; preopercular spines very well developed; grouped in 2 radiating clusters with a deep notch between them.

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Sand Sea Trout

pale body color, yellow above, silver to white below; one or two prominent canine teeth usually at tip of upper jaw; inside of mouth yellow; no well-defined black spots on back; 10 to 12 soft rays in anal fin; no chin barbels.

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Scaled Sardine

solid back with dark streaks, usually single small dark spot at upper edge of opercule and sometimes one at shoulder.

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Scamp

color light gray or brown; large adults with elongated caudal-fin rays; reddish-brown spots on sides that tend to be grouped into lines; some yellow around corners of mouth.

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Schoolmaster

color olive gray on upper sides with yellow tinge, sometimes with reddish tinge around head; long triangular snout.

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Sheepshead

basic silvery color, with 5 or 6 distinct vertical black bars on sides, not always the same on both sides.

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Silk Snapper

back and upper sides pinkish red, shading to silvery sides with undulating yellow lines; pectoral fins pale yellow; back edge of caudal fin blackish; anal fin pointed; no dark lateral spot; yellow eye.

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Silver Perch

color silvery with yellowish fins; no spots; no chin barbels; no prominent canine teeth at tip of upper jaw; preopercle finely serrated; 5 to 6 chin pores; mouth terminal.

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Silver Sea Trout

pale straw-colored above, silvery sides and white below; no distinctive pigmentation, although faint diagonal lines may be present on upper body.

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Snook

distinct black lateral line; high, divided dorsal fin; sloping forehead; large mouth, protruding lower jaw; grows much larger than other snooks; pelvic fin yellow.

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Southern Kingfish

grayish brown above, with silvery sides: 7 to 8 diagonal dusky bars or blotches on each side, but these marks are obscure and never form V-shaped marks on side; scales on chest about same size as those on body.

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Spanish Mackerel

color of back green, shading to silver on sides, golden yellow irregular spots above and below lateral line; front of dorsal fin black; lateral line curves gently to base of tail.

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Spanish Sardine

back bluish gray, sometimes greenish; sides silvery to brassy; slender body.

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Spot

the only drum in our region with a distinctly forked caudal fin; bluish to brownish above; brassy on side; silvery to white below; distinct brownish spot on shoulder; 12 to 15 narrow, diagonal dark lines on upper body.

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Spottail Pinfish

dark saddle on caudal peduncle sometimes forms a complete ring around peduncle in adults; eight faint bars on body, alternately long and short.

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Spotted Seatrout

INSHORE and/or NEARSHORE over grass, sand, and sandy mud bottoms; move into slow-moving or still, deep waters in cold weather.

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Stingray

disk almost a perfect rhombus, with pointed corners; ventral finfold on tail long and relatively high, dorsal finfold rows near shoulder; disk usually uniform dark brown above, grayer in young.

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Striped Anchovy

snout length somewhat less than eye diameter; silver stripe on body narrow – width less than eye diameter or snout length throughout; back greenish; some yellowish about the head.

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Striped Mojarra

body dark olive above; tan to silvery on side, often with a metallic sheen; conspicuous blackish stripe along center of each scale row, except toward belly.

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Swordfish

color of back variable, black, grayish blue, brown, metallic purple, or bronze; sides dusky; underbelly dirty white; long flat, sword-like upper jaw;

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Swordspine Snook

slightly concave; prominent lateral line outlined in black (not solid), extends through caudal fin; color yellowgreen to brown-green above, silvery below; giant second anal spine, hence the name; largest scales of all snook.

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Tarpon

Last ray of dorsal fin extended into long filament; one dorsal fin; back dark blue to green or greenish black, shading into bright silver on the sides; may be brownish gold in estuarine waters; huge scales; mouth large and points upward.

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Tarpon Snook

7 anal fin rays (others have 6); lower jaw curves upward; compressed body; prominent black lateral line extends through tail; tips of pelvic fins reach beyond anus.

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Tomate

bright orange mouth lining; light colored; gray to tan on back; yellow to brown stripe from head to base of tail fin; black blotch at base of tail fin fades away in larger specimens.

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Tripletail

almost black; pale olive band across base of caudal fin; broad, dark brown bar from eye across cheek below corner of preopercle.

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Vermillion Snapper

back and upper sides olive to bluish with yellow spots; lower sides and belly with alternating narrow, longitudinal pink and yellow stripes; prominent mid lateral yellow stripe begins at mouth and runs to tail.

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Wahoo

body slender; elongate jaws form a pointed beak; dark bluish above, with about 30 dark wavy bars; whitish below 1st dorsal fin long and low, with 21 to 27 spines; no gill rakers.

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Warsaw Grouper

uniformly dark brown, with no distinctive markings; dorsal fin with 10 spines; second spine very long (much longer than third); caudal fin squared-off; rear nostril larger than front nostril.

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Weakfish

dark olive or blue-green back; sides covered in tones of blue, purple, lavender, gold, and copper; irregular diagonal rows of vaguelydefined dark spots appear above the lateral line.

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White Grunt

body color light bluish-gray, head with horizontal blue stripes, white underbelly; black blotch on preopercle; margin of each scale bronze; large bright orange mouth; scales above lateral line larger than scales below lateral line.

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White Marlin

color of body dark blue to chocolate brown, shading to slivery white underbelly; noticeable spots on dorsal fin; upper jaw elongated in shape of a spear.

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Yellow Menhaden

silvery, with a greenish or bluish back; fins golden yellow; a single dark shoulder spot; scales on back noticeably smaller than those on sides and difficult to count – about 60-70 rows across middle of side; 27-30 (usually 28-29) ventral scutes.

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Yellowfin Grouper

color highly greenish olive or bright red with longitudinal rows or darker black blotches over entire fish; outer one-third of pectoral fins bright yellow; lower parts of larger fish with small bright red spots.

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Yellowfin Tuna

pectoral fin moderately long, reaching point below beginning of 2nd dorsal fin; 2nd dorsal fin and all finlets yellow; no white rear edge on caudal fin; golden stripe on side.

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Yellowmouth Grouper

color tan or brown with darker spots; spots, or a network of spots, fused into lines; distinct yellow wash behind the jaws; yellow around the eyes; outer edges of fins yellowish.

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Yellowtail Snapper

Description: back and upper sides olive to bluish with yellow spots; lower sides and belly with alternating narrow, longitudinal pink and yellow stripes; prominent mid lateral yellow stripe begins at mouth and runs to tail.

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