Sailfish Fishing
DESCRIPTION Upper surfaces usually dark blue to black; silvery below; vertical stripes often visible on sides.
SIZE Averages 30-60 pounds, but many under 30 pounds and a few up to 100 pounds are also taken. Potential maximum is less than 150 pounds in the Atlantic Ocean. World record 221 pounds; Florida record 116 pounds.
FOOD VALUE Very good broiled or smoked, and should be kept if inadvertently killed. Protected commercially.
GAME QUALITIES Unsurpassed in its size range for combined strength and spectacle.
OTHER NAMES Atlantic Sailfish, Spindlebeak or Pez Vela
RANGE All Florida coasts; Bahamas; Caribbean Islands. Most plentiful along Florida's Atlantic side from roughly Fort Pierce through the Keys.
HABITAT Like the other Billfishes, the Sailfish is considered an ocean species, but generally can be found closer to land than the rest, seeming to prefer areas where coral reefs and/or freshwater runoff's mingle with ocean water. At times, particualary in Southeast Florida, the Sailfish comes right into the surf and quite a few have been caught over the years from beaches and piers.