Bluefin tuna is big fish. But they’re not just big. I mean, they have real physical strength and smarts. A fish heavier than a car has no clue where to go. So if you’re going to do it, you want to know how their size relates to there weight. Knowing that will help shape your game plan and also respect them as an animal.
As you can see on the chart, the biggest species are the Atlantic bluefin. It is not even close to the size of the other two. The southern and pacific varieties is strong, though. An Atlantic bluefin can gets over twelve feet long. Weighing almost a ton and a half, it’s quite an impressive creature. A thousand four hundred ninety-six pounds is current IGFA world record. Caught in 1979 out of Nova Scotia, this fish take decades of feeding and growing to achieve such mass. Not many angler go after those kinds of fish.
How Big Is a Bluefin Tuna
By medium we mean most anglers’ everyday sport fish. That would be a tuna weighing roughly two hundred seventy pounds and measuring about six feet in length. It is not a fish you fight with brute strength but rather one that demand technique. It will push your drag settings. It will run far and long, it is smart, strong, and fast. Learn its volume through the girth formula. A six-foot tuna with a thirty-eight inch girth are harder to handle than a sixty-pound salmon of the same length. Length isn’t everything; volume play a role too.
The bigger they get, the different gear gets dialed in. The biggest reel isn’t always best. A twenty pounder is schoolie. Ninety pounds are a juvenile. Big ones require heavy gear like 200-pound line and fighting chair. The bigger fish needs more control due to there size. The heavier lines aren’t going to do well on a thirty-pounder. You will feel less.
Giant bluefins is fish over four hundred fifty pounds. Here we’re talking about two hundred-pound line and harness, big fighting chairs. The human frame can’t hold up to that pressure most times. Guys have to take off and go after them with harpoons sometimes instead of a reel. That’s when it goes from sport fishing to traditional hunting.
The fish aren’t always available: Bluefin move to find food and mates. During their reproductive periods they group up in known spot such as the Mediterranean or the Gulf of Mexico. The bigger blues mature between age 8-12. That’s why conservation groups (ICCAT) strictly regulate young fish. They want to protect the breeding stock so there will be large bluefin tuna in years to come. It takes years for them to reach maturity, and that’s why there is rules in place. These are long-lived creatures.
We’re not all trophy hunters. To catch bluefin, you have to match what’s real with your preparation. Will you be chasing schooling juveniles? Or is it time for some bait for those medium adult? Being aware of the strength and size you are targeting means less anxiousness and more anticipation. You guess less and plan more. A dorsal fin appears and you’re prepared to put the fish down on your terms.