Marlin fish taste qualities. What is the appearance of marlin fish? Description of Black Marlin

Marlins - genus predatory fish family marlin (sailfish), living in the oceans of the tropics and subtropics. The name is translated from Greek and Latin like a dagger. Marlin fish is of considerable value in sport fishing. And her outstanding taste qualities and high the nutritional value made her popular all over the world.

Description and features

The fish has a long xiphoid process, which is a transformed upper jaw. With his help, she hunts for more small fish and squid. The dorsal fin looks like a sail. The spine has 24 vertebrae. The teeth are small. During hunting, marlin can turn from dark blue to bright blue due to iridophores (pigmented light-reflecting cells). Sensory lateral line receptors (neuromasts) are good indicator water movements are better expressed in young animals.

Females are 4 times larger than males. Their weight usually exceeds 500 kg, and the length is 2-3 meters. There is information about a giant fish weighing 820 kg and 5 meters long.

This predator is capable of reaching speeds of up to 130 km / h due to some interesting features:

• The body of the fish is flattened on the sides. The shape is well streamlined;
• The ventral, pectoral and anal fins of the fish can be hidden in depressions in the body. The resistance when moving in water is significantly reduced;
• A sharp long spear on the head cuts the water perfectly.

The International Organization for Conservation of Nature has given the marlin Vulnerable status. Thousands of tons of this fish are caught annually only in the Caribbean region. Longline fishing brings the greatest damage to the marlin population. In the United States, a law was passed according to which all vessels must release this fish at a certain distance from the coast. But, unfortunately, due to the injuries received during the capture, marlins have almost no chance of survival.

Distribution and maturation

The most numerous type of marlin is the blue Atlantic. He is honored to adorn the coat of arms of the Bahamas. It lives in the west of the Atlantic Ocean, preferring temperatures above 23 degrees. Migrates seasonally by long routes.

Sexual maturity occurs around 3 years of age. Females spawn several times per season with 7 million eggs per 1 mm in size, which have a very low survival rate. Dark blue larvae grow at a high rate. The larvae feed on zooplankton. The large and concave dorsal fin of young fish decreases relative to body height with age. Females live up to 27 years, males 10 years less. Predators prefer a solitary lifestyle, flocks are a rare phenomenon.

Apart from the person marlin can only be hunted by certain types of sharks- white and mako. On the gills, fish-sticks are sometimes found.

Exquisite fish dishes

Fish meat is perfect for cooking, frying, barbecue, salting and smoking. The Japanese prefer raw marlin in their national dish sashimi.

Baked marlin with herbs

Lemon sauce with herbs goes well with the unique taste of marlin. To prepare baked marlin, you need to take:

• Fish fillet - 1 kg;
• Olive oil- 150 ml;
• Lemon - 2 pcs.;
• Mint - 4 sprigs;
• Dill - 2 bunches;
• Parsley - 2 bunches;
• Water - 2 tbsp. l.;
• Salt.

Salt the fish pieces, add a little lemon juice. Bake for 40-50 minutes, you can in foil. Drizzle with herb sauce, oil, water, salt, lemon zest and juice.

Steak with vegetables and mushrooms

The degree of roasting of the steak - for an amateur:

• The most fried, practically not releasing juice, the meat is cooked for 10 minutes at a high temperature and brought in the oven;
• Unroasted is cooked for 2-3 minutes and remains red inside;
• The steak becomes medium-done after 5-6 minutes of processing. His juice is pinkish.

In order not to interrupt your own unique aroma of marlin, you should not abuse spices. To cook a steak you will need:

In a heated oiled pan, fry the fish pieces to the desired degree. Salted vegetables with mushrooms, fry in a pan or grill until golden brown. Shortly before readiness, you can add soy sauce. Serve hot.

Ukha, salting and smoking

To prepare a tasty and rich soup, the tail must be cut across into pieces of several centimeters, the fins and head divided into 2 parts. Bring water to a boil with several cut onions, add salt, black peppercorns. Boil the fish in this water for 10 minutes after boiling.

For salting, cut the fish into pieces 10 by 30 cm, rub with fine salt. Wrap in a clean cloth and refrigerate. Turn over the next day. On the fourth day you can use.

For smoking, soak the bars measuring 15 by 30 cm in a saline solution of medium strength for 5 hours. Smoke tied with twine.

Every fisherman dreams of a good big catch. Professional anglers try to catch the most big fish and set a new world record. Each of us understands that an absolute record for all time is impossible. There will definitely be craftsmen who can achieve greater results than their predecessors, but there are people for whom the desire to become the most successful angler becomes the goal of their whole life. The names of such lucky ones were included in the list International Association sport fishing.

Ken Fraster caught the world's largest Atlantic tuna (lat. Thunnus thynnus) off Olds Cove in Nova Scotia, Canada. This event took place on October 26, 1979. The fish weighed 678 kg and Ken managed to catch it in just 45 minutes, for which he became famous for the rest of his life.

Record Great Atlantic blue marlin(lat. Makaira nigricans) was caught by Paulo Amorim on February 29, 1992. He fought the hulk for 80 minutes and pulled it to the coast of Victoria in Brazil. Marlin weighed almost 635 kg and overtook the previous record by 54 kilograms.

Swordfish (lat. Xiphias gladius) of record size was caught on May 7, 1953 in the waters of Chile off the coast of Iquique. The lucky one was Lou Maron, who pulled out the giant in 2 hours. It was 4.55 meters long and weighed over 536 kilograms.

4. Giant of the Mekong River - Catfish "Grizzly Bear"

On May 1, 2005, a fisherman from northern Thailand caught what many scientists of the world considered the largest freshwater fish in the world - giant catfish(Pangasianodon gigas). Its length was 2.74 meters and it weighed 293 kilograms. Since it resembled an adult grizzly bear in size, the locals called it that.

On October 16, 1986, a fisherman named Lothar Lewis caught a giant pike 152 centimeters long in Lake Greffern, in western Germany. Rybina weighed 25 kg, which is almost 5 kg more than the previous record set by Peter Dubuk. It took Lothar Lewis 40 minutes to deal with the giant and pull him ashore.

This huge trout perch (lat. Micropterus salmonides) is a record holder for two reasons: firstly, it weighs 10 kilograms, and secondly, it is also the oldest trout perch in the world - it is 77 years old. He was caught by Manabu Kurita from the city of Aichi in Japan on July 2, 2009.

This fearsome species is commonly found in the southwestern United States, but also occasionally swims as far north as Illinois and as far south as the city of Veracruz in Mexico. This fish was shot by John Paul Morris and weighed 104 kg.

Giant tiger fish (lat. Hydrocynus goliath) lives in the waters of rivers central Africa and is famous for its large teeth. tiger fish of record size was caught on July 9, 1988 by Raymond Houtmans. The weight of the fish was almost 44 kilograms.

Marlin is rep enough big family marlin, which, in turn, belong to the perch-like order. This fish is known for its interesting features, which consist in the special structure of the muzzle, similar in structure to the muzzle of the swordsman and the ability to reach speeds of more than 110 kilometers per hour under water.

Appearance and varieties

Marlin representatives have a powerful, slightly laterally flattened body. The fish has a spear-shaped snout, rounded in cross section. The jaws and palatine bones are equipped with small sawtooth teeth. Marlin have 2 dorsal fins, which are relatively close to each other. The height of the marlin body can fit in its length up to 4.5 times.

In nature, there are several varieties of the marlin family: black marlin, blue marlin, which is also called blue marlin and Indo-Pacific. Below is a brief descriptive description of each of the varieties, accompanied by photos and videos.

Black marlin is a large representative of its family. Black marlin has a spear-shaped upper jaw. Black marlin has an elongated body shape, which is covered with small oblong scales, completely hidden in the skin. Feature of this species are the pectoral fins, which the black marlin cannot press against its body. Black marlin can grow up to 3 meters long and weigh more than 700 tons.

Blue or blue marlin is a representative of its family with one interesting feature. Maximum dimensions males more than 4 times smaller sizes females. So, for example, males weighing more than 160 kilograms are rare, while females can gain weight in excess of 540 kilograms. The blue marlin has bony rays that support its fins. The body is painted dark blue on the back and silver on the sides.

Distribution and habitats

This fish is an inhabitant of the ocean depths. For habitat prefers water temperature over 23 degrees Celsius. As a rule, marlins are found in open waters, however, they can rarely enter continental shallow waters and shelf areas. The fish does not form numerous clusters, however, it does not lead a solitary lifestyle. Usually marlin gather in small groups. Which include up to 10 individuals.

This fish is found in the tropical and subtropical regions of the Pacific, Indian and Atlantic Oceans. Most individuals prefer to live along the equator. Very often it can be found almost at the surface of the water, at a depth of up to 50 meters. However, some sources have information that he special work able to dive to a depth of more than 1800 meters.

Diet

As a rule, the menu of fish includes epipelagic, however, marlin can also eat deep-sea representatives, such as, for example, luminous anchovies. It also eats large pelagic fish. A special delicacy is tuna, large squid, swimming crab and shrimps.

Near the Hawaiian Islands, fishermen found a bigeye tuna in the stomach of a caught marlin. The victim weighed over 28 kilograms. At the same time, the young marlin itself, taking into account the weight of the victim, was 340 kilograms. Some sources provide information that the Indo-Pacific marlin uses its rostrum to stun its prey.

reproduction

Marlin reaches puberty in the third year of life. Before the first spawning, females can weigh as little as 44 kilograms, while young males can weigh up to 61 kilograms. Spawning takes place from August to November. Some females can spawn up to 4 times per season. An average female can lay up to 7 million eggs.

The diameter of the eggs is only 1 mm. With such fecundity, high mortality of eggs and larvae is characteristic, which is characteristic of all animals with high fecundity. Planktonic juveniles and marlin larvae move across the ocean in ocean currents. Most often, larvae are found in the Atlantic, near Georgia, North Carolina, Florida. Jamaica, the Bahamas and off the coast of Brazil.

Marlin larvae develop extremely quickly. average speed growth is up to 16 millimeters per day. In the Bahamas, a marlin was caught with a body length of more than 250 millimeters at an age of only 42 days. The sides of the young are painted with a bluish tint, and the belly in White color. The color of the caudal fin and caudal peduncle has a light tone.

Caught marlin is the dream of every angler. Today, marlin fishing is one of the types active rest. This giant is a very strong and tenacious fish. The fight against him will lead to indescribable delight of any, even an avid fisherman.

Caught marlin

Black marlin.
(Makaira indica)

Black Marlin (English), White marlin (Japan), Silver marlin (Hawaii).

Habitats of Black Marlin:

This variety of marlin lives in the tropical latitudes of the Indian and Pacific Oceans.

Marlin is a pelagic fish, i.e. living in the water column. Black marlin prefers to stay at not very great depths (no more200 meters ), unlike the Blue Marlin. It is constantly moving, but the largest concentration of this fish still falls on the coastal areas and around the islands. Apparently, this is due to the food supply of marlin.

Marlin is a thermophilic fish and it is almost impossible to meet it outside the tropical latitudes. Although scientists observing marlin migrations found interesting fact: several fish circled the Cape Good Hope and ended up in the Atlantic Ocean. And some specimens during migrations covered huge distances from Brazil to the Lesser Antilles. True, scientists are inclined to the version that this is more an exception than a rule, and usually Black Marlin does not make such long journeys.

Description of Black Marlin:

A distinctive feature of the Black Marlin is the pectoral fins, which do not fold along the body, but are always located perpendicular to it. Also, unlike the Blue (Blue) marlin, the body of the Black is not round in cross section, but rather strongly flattened from the sides.

The color of the back is blue-black, the sides are silvery, the belly is white. Sometimes horizontal lines may appear on the sides of Black Marlin. blue stripes.

Average weight of Black marlin 100- 140 kg (females) and 200-230 kg (males). According to the International Fishing Association IGFA, the largest Black Marlin was caught in 1953 off the coast of Peru. Its weight was 707.61 kg.

Black marlin is an active predator. Basically, he preys on tuna, mackerel, dolphin and other fish that he can handle. Also, studying the contents of the stomachs of the caught Black marlin, scientists concluded that squid, crabs and lobsters also make up a certain share in their menu.

Ways to catch Black Marlin:

Black marlin is one of the types of fish included in Offshore Grand Slam(The so-called "Grand Slam" away from the coast, on the seashore. It includes blue marlin, black marlin and two types of swordfish.)

Of course, Black marlin is a desirable prey for any angler.

How to hunt this strong and noble fish?

The main fishing method is sea trolling using various surface baits: some types of wobblers, "octopuses" and dead fish tackle (mackerel, mackerel, flying fish, etc.). Live fish is also a good bait.

The shape of the body and the strength that nature has generously awarded him allow him to accelerate to 100 km/h and higher. Together with the violent temper and explosive nature of this marine predator, playing it turns into a whole performance with

an endless series of magnificent "candles", passing on the surface on the tail and high-speed circles wound around the boat.

The process of struggle, depending on the size of the fish, can last for hours.

Basically, hunting for black marlin takes place on a catch-and-release basis,

and with proper handling of the captive, most of them endure the process of fighting without consequences.

The fact is that the breathing process in marlin is directly related to movement. So, moving in the ocean, this fish always keeps its mouth ajar so that oxygen-enriched water passes through the gills.

Otherwise, the fish will die after a while. Given this feature, if the fish is planned to be released, the fishermen do not get it on board, but release the bait from the hooks in the water. In this case, the boat continues to move at low speed, creating movement of water.

Culinary value:

Black marlin meat is highly valued in cuisines various countries. In addition to traditional soups and cooking on coals, marlin meat is a component of Japanese sushi - kajiki, in the manufacture of which practically

cooking is not applied.

Blue (blue) marlin.

(Latin: Makaira nigricans, English: Blue marlin)

The habitat of the Blue Marlin is the tropical waters of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, as well as in Indian Ocean around Ceylon, Mauritius and east coast Africa. Seasonal concentrations of Blue Marlin occur in the Southwest Atlantic from January to April, in the Northwest Atlantic from June to October, in the Equatorial Pacific in April and November, in the Western and Central North Pacific from May to October , and in the Indian Ocean from April to October.

Blue marlin can be found both near the shore and thousands of kilometers away.

Blue marlin is larger than Black. It is believed that Weight Limit it may approach a ton, although only specimens up to726 kg . The body length of the Blue Marlin reaches 5 meters . But the average individuals caught on a fishing trip are usually smaller than Black marlin and their weight is 100- 150 kg.

Distinctive features of the Blue Marlin are the pectoral fins, which are freely pressed against the body of the fish, as well as the dorsal fin - high and sharp (not rounded). The back is black, the sides and belly are silvery white. Sometimes horizontal stripes are visible on the sides, which disappear after the death of the fish. There are no spots on the fins.

Ways to catch Blue Marlin:

Blue marlin lives in the water column and hunts both in the surface layer and at considerable depths (over 200 meters ). Its main prey is tuna, flying fish, sardines, dolphins, squids, etc.

The blue marlin, like its close relative, the black marlin, is included in Offshore Grand Slam(the so-called "Grand Slam" away from the coast, on the seashore.

It includes blue marlin, black marlin and two kinds of swordfish.)

Blue marlin are caught by trolling in the surface layers. The bait is large wobblers, octopuses, large streamers ( strip baits) or tackle from live or dead fish.

To attract a predator, a noisy rattle is often used.

Blue marlin is a gambling predator. If the bait falls into his field of vision, then, as a rule, a fierce bite follows. The slashed Blue Marlin frantically fights for its life, goes into the depths, and then jumps out of the water with lightning speed and “dances” on its tail. An angler's fight with a sea giant can last for several hours! Because of these unforgettable moments, thousands of anglers all over the world are ready to spend time, effort and a lot of money!

Blue marlin is caught, as a rule, according to the principle "Caught and released". In some regions of the world, restrictions are imposed on catching Blue marlin.

Culinary value:

Blue marlin meat is highly valued in the cuisines of various countries.

In addition to Black and Blue marlin, there are several other types of marlin that are of interest to the angler.

Striped marlin.

Tetrapturus audax (lat), Striped Marlin (eng), Red marlin (Japan)

Distributed in tropical and warm temperate waters of the Indian and Pacific Oceans.

The striped marlin is a pelagic fish and migrates seasonally, moving towards the equator during the cold season and returning back during the warm season.

A distinctive feature of the striped marlin is a high dorsal fin, equal to the height of the body of the fish. The pectoral fins are easily folded and pressed close. The body is strongly flattened laterally.

The back of the striped marlin is silver-blue, the sides are silvery with a blue tint, the belly is white. On the sides there are horizontal blue stripes that persist even after the death of the fish, which distinguishes the striped marlin from its fellow species.

There are many iridescent spots on the fins.

The striped marlin is an active predator. His diet includes sardinella, anchovies, mackerel, saury, flying fish, squid.

Striped marlin are caught in much the same way as Black and Blue marlin. Surface wobblers, octopuses, large streamers, live bait and tackle from dead fish are used as bait.

Striped marlin are often hooked a short distance from the shore.

A distinctive feature of the Striped Marlin is its behavior after hooking. This fish is lighter and more dynamic than its relatives, and once on the hook it makes dizzying jumps, "candles" and "tail dances". The playing of the Striped Marlin is one of the most spectacular.

White marlin.

Tetrapturus albidus (lat), White Marlin or spikefish (eng)

It is found throughout the Atlantic Ocean, including the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean Sea, and even the western Mediterranean.

White marlin is a pelagic fish, but it can often be found in fairly shallow coastal areas (from20 meters).

White marlin is similar in appearance to the Striped. It is distinguished from its fellows by more rounded tips of the fins, a greenish tint on the back and a black-violet spot on the dorsal and anal fins. While feeding or jumping, blue vertical stripes may appear on the body of the White Marlin.

White marlin is caught by trolling with ordinary lures: surface wobblers, octopuses, large streamers, live bait and tackle from dead fish, sliced ​​\u200b\u200bfish or squid.

Smaller lures and baits are used to catch White Marlin than for its larger relatives.

Niramin - Apr 21st, 2016

Black marlin (lat. Istiompax indica) is a fish that migrates over considerable distances. Lives in tropical and subtropical zones Indian and Pacific Oceans, in coastal waters, as well as near reefs and islands. Rare specimens swim into the Atlantic Ocean, rounding the Cape of Good Hope. There are cases when they even crossed it and were seen off the coast of Rio de Janeiro and the Lesser Antilles.

The body of this inhabitant of the seas is oblong, slightly flattened on both sides. It has a short spear-shaped snout and two dorsal fins. The belly is silvery white, and vertical stripes adorn the dark blue back of some individuals. It grows up to 4.60 m long and weighs up to 700 kg. Anglers distinguish it from others by its rigid pectoral fins.

Prefers to swim and hunt in warm water temperature 15-30 °C. It feeds on smaller fish, cuttlefish and large crustaceans. He loves tuna very much.

Black marlin become sexually mature in 2-4 years. Females lay up to 40 million transparent white or yellow color and 1 mm in diameter. Biologists know little about the spawning period.

Some individuals have a body with a silvery sheen, therefore, in Hawaii, these fish are called "silver marlins."

Istiompax indica is one of the most popular hunting objects among lovers of sports fishing, because catching this giant with a strong body is not so easy. Its tender meat is considered a rare and exquisite delicacy and is served in the best restaurants.

See photos of black marlin:

Video: Sharpys Black Marlin | Istiompax (Makaira) indica

Video: BLACK MARLIN - EXTREME KAYAK FISHING

Video: Spearfishing Black Marlin - Full Story