🌊 Saltwater

Tarpon

Megalops atlanticus

The tarpon is one of the world's greatest game fish — sometimes called "the silver king." Reaching over 8 feet and 280 pounds, tarpon are known for explosive leaps, bulldogging runs, and shaking their massive heads to throw hooks. They are a primitive fish — essentially unchanged for millions of years — and are found in warm coastal waters throughout the Atlantic. They are almost universally released after capture.

📏
Typical Size
4–8 feet (1.2–2.4m)
⚖️
Weight
30–150+ lbs (13.6–68+ kg); record 286 lbs 9 oz
⏳
Lifespan
50–80 years
💧
Water Type
Saltwater

🗺️ Habitat

Warm, coastal waters of the Atlantic Ocean from Virginia to Brazil, including the Caribbean. Often found in estuaries, bays, lagoons, and even freshwater rivers.

🔍 How to Identify Tarpon

  • 1Very large scales with a distinctive bluish-silver iridescence
  • 2Lower jaw projects forward (prognathous) and mouth opens at nearly vertical angle
  • 3Last ray of dorsal fin is greatly elongated
  • 4Swim bladder is partially lung-like — tarpon can gulp air at the surface
  • 5Massive, deeply forked tail

🍽️ Diet

Mullet, sardines, pinfish, shrimp, and crabs

💡 Fun Facts About Tarpon

  • ★Tarpon can gulp air from the surface, allowing them to survive in low-oxygen water
  • ★A tarpon caught and released can make 25+ leaps — each up to 10 feet in the air
  • ★Tarpon are one of the oldest living fish families — fossils date back 100 million years
  • ★Fly fishing for tarpon is considered the ultimate challenge in saltwater fly fishing
  • ★Boca Grande, Florida is called the "tarpon capital of the world"

🛡️ Conservation Status

Vulnerable — almost all tarpon are released, but populations face threats from habitat loss

🔗 Related Species

Common Snook

Identify Tarpon Instantly with AI

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Learn more:

How to Identify Fish: A Beginner's GuideMost Common Freshwater Fish in North America← Back to All Fish Species