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Fish, Crustaceans & Cephalopods

Beche De Mer
(Sea Cucumber)

Striped Marlin: Dorsal spines (total): 0 - 0; Dorsal soft rays (total): 42 - 48; Anal spines: 0; Anal soft rays: 18 – 24. Body elongated and compressed; upper jaw produced into a robust and medium sized beak; two dorsal fins, the height of the first greater than the greatest depth, short anteriorly, taller in the middle, then becoming shorter posteriorly; pectoral fins falcate and flexible, with 18 to 22 rays; body densely covered by small, embedded scales with 1 or 2 bluntish points; back dark blue; belly silvery; membrane of first dorsal fin blue black without dark spots; flanks with about 20 bluish stripes (Ref. 55763). Blue-black above and silvery white below, with about 15 rows of cobalt-colored stripes; 1st dorsal fin dark blue; other fins dark brown, sometimes with a tinge of dark blue; anal fin bases with a tinge of silvery white.

Epi-pelagic and oceanic species, usually found above the thermocline. Generally inhabit cooler water than either black (Makaira indica) or blue marlin (M. mazara) (Ref. 43). Most dominant and widely distributed of all billfishes. Their abundance increases with distance from the continental shelf (Ref. 6390). Usually seen close to shore only where deep drop-offs occur (Ref. 6390). Mostly solitary, but form small schools by size during the spawning season (Ref. 9987). They are usually dispersed at considerably wide distances. Feed on fishes, crustaceans and squids. Also caught with the harpoon. The flesh is the best among billfishes for sashimi and sushi. Marketed mostly frozen, sometimes fresh (Ref. 43); also smoked and frozen

Angling for Striped Marlin:

Because of their large size and strength, catching marlin demands the use of quality tackle kept in good repair. Trolling with lures and trolling with baits - either live or dead - and fishing at anchor or from a drifting boat with baits, live or dead, accounts for over 90 per cent of the marlin taken in our waters. The best lures are Konahead-style skirted heads that run freely on the leader or trace. A lure of this pattern with a flat or slightly angled head, called a "pusher", trolled a between 7 and 12 knots behind a moving boat, is a proven method of attracting marlin. Suitable live and dead baits range from 15 centimetre yellowtail scad or mullet, through 3 kg striped tuna and 5 kg mackerel tuna to whole 15 kg Spanish mackerel! The choice of baits depends on the location, the strength of tackle, and the ambitions of the angler. Rigging baits for trolling - especially dead baits, which are pulled fairly quickly - is an acquired skill. Many fine marlin have also been taken on live baits of tuna, bonito, salmon or kingfish hooked through the top jaw or bridle rigged and trolled at walking pace near a current line or patch of bait. In lure fishing, the strike is instantaneous, as the drag is usually set at about a quarter to a third of the line's breaking strain. The hook either punches home or misses in the instant of the strike. However, if taken on a bait, marlin should be allowed to turn and run with the bait against minimal resistance for anything between one and 30 seconds before being struck.  

Striped Marlin: How to Catch and Release Big Fish
By Jon Schwartz www.bluewaterjon.com

Striped Marlin on the Pacific Coast of North America aren’t as big as blues and black marlin, and are only half as big as striped marlin get in New Zealand, but when fought on moderate tackle (30-40 pound test), they put up a tremendous fight and jump plenty. Most I’ve seen run between 100-150 pounds

Their stripes are more pronounced than any other species of marlin, and they can even reverse their pattern, from being dark stripes on light skin, to light stripes on dark skin. Their stripes become more pronounced when they are agitated and on the hunt. When they are tired and exhausted, they lose their colors and stripes.

One popular method of sport fishing involves the use of circle hooks with live bait. The hook ends up catching in the corner of the mouth rather than in the gut and promotes healthier releases. Mouth hooked fish fight better and jump more. Other anglers troll skirted lures with j-hooks. Some use two hooks, but some of the world’s most successful captains that I have ridden with only use one hook, and one hook certainly increases the odds of a quicker and safer release for the fish and the person charged with releasing it.

While some choose to hoist the fish into the boat to pose with it, it’s better for the fish to remain in the water. Removing them from the water creates undue stress. I have swam with many marlin and I can personally attest to the fact that fish that have been removed from the water for a glory shot take longer to recover, and some will not recover. Scientists, seasoned captains and anglers, and conservation organizations such as The Billfish Foundation also contend that their protective slime is removed when they are handled, and it’s nearly impossible to bring a 150+ pound fish aboard and properly support them. In addition, one has to tire the fish out more to make them still enough to handle and bring aboard.

Often a fish is brought aboard because the captain and mate assume that the angler wants it to happen; the captain and mates I know would actually rather leave it in the water, but they feel pressure to bring it aboard to please the angler. If you can resist the temptation to have your marlin brought aboard, tell the mate and captain in advance that you’d rather they keep the fish in the water and release it in better shape.

To best protect marlin and ensure that they swim away in good health, it’s best to fight them on sufficiently stout tackle, and use fighting harnesses to maximize your leverage. These help reduce fight time and enable the angler to bring the fish to boat side for a quicker release. This might mean using 30-40 pound tackle for striped marlin in the 150 pound range, 50 pound tackle for marlin up to 250 pounds, 60 pound tackle for fish between 250 and 400 pounds, 80 pound tackle for fish 400-600 pounds, and 130 pound tackle for anything bigger.

Your captain and mate will be able to tell you the size of fish that you will likely encounter in an area at a certain type of year. That being said, of course a 1000 pound marlin can come up and engulf a bait rigged on 50 pound test, but that’s rare. If you’re like me, you’ll have more fun rigging right for the fish you’re likely to encounter.

If you’d like more “face time” with your marlin, it may be possible to do so without removing the fish from the water. The fish can be brought alongside the boat while the boat is still moving slowly in gear, and if the fish remains calm, the mate sometimes can hold the fish’s bill close to the water’s surface, so that water continues to flow through the fish’s gills. Once you’ve got your face time, they simply release the bill and the fish swims away in great shape.

Cooking Striped Marlin:

Striped Marlin - High fat, Low moisture, medium to firm texture.

Marlin of all sizes are fair to good table fish, although the relatively high mercury content of their flesh precludes them from some commercial markets. The striped marlin, with its pinkish orange flesh, is generally considered to be much tastier than either of the other species mentioned.

Billfishes swordfish and striped marlin are becoming more popular food fishes in Australia. While grouped together under the name billfish , they have distinctive textures and flavours.

Swordfish is often described as the most meat-like of all fishes. The steaks have very high oil content, with a dense, meaty texture and a slightly sweet taste. The flavour is not overpowering, allowing for stronger flavours to be used in its preparation. An interesting way to prepare swordfish is to poach steaks in a strong fish stock, infused with olives. Dress with dried red capsicum, dried tomatoes, olives and oven-roasted garlic, and serve on a bed of angel hair pasta with a mash of salsify. Swordfish is also suited to grilling, frying and baking.

Striped marlin flesh is darker and more strongly flavoured. It is firmly textured and quite low in moisture. Most suited to grilling, marlin can also be prepared by baking, poaching, shallow frying or smoking, or eaten raw as sashimi. Simply sear marlin on a hot grill and serve with a citrus and pecan salsa. Or you may wish to add spicier Thai flavours. Try char-grilling but keep the centre rare to avoid dryness. Marlin is delicious smoked and is a common entree.

Microwave Cooking Times for Fish
- Fish fillets – 5 minutes per 500g on medium-high, +50 seconds more for thicker fillets, or until flesh flakes
- Whole fish - Large – 6 minutes/750g on medium
- Whole fish – Small – 3-4 minutes on medium

Commercial Fishing for Striped Marlin:

Wild caught

Recovery Rate
Steaks: 60% from headed and gutted striped marlin and 70% from headed and gutted swordfish

More links about Striped Marlin and Marlin