The local anglers of Kona, Hawaii are always in pursuit of Hawaii's ultimate sporting prize: The Pacific Blue Marlin; one of the largest, most beautiful, and most powerful fish in the sea. Sharing the Hawaiian waters with this awesome creature are a variety of other sportfish species, some of which we feature here.

While there are many types of fish in Hawaii, in keeping with our offshore theme we profile the types of sportfish we're likely to come across in our quest for fishing nirvana. Like many issues related to fishing, the data and narratives provided here are always subject to varying opinions. State and IGFA records are current according to the best available information.

We'd sure appreciate an E-mail with any new State or IGFA records if we've missed them.

Striped Marlin - Tetrapturus audax

Hawaiian Name: a'u Avg Weight: 60 lbs Fishing Method: Daytime trolling/Live Bait Best Fishing: May-December IGFA Record: 494lbs Tutukaka, New Zealand 1/16/86 State Record: 211lbs Red Hill, HI 1996

Catch a Striped Marlin the same as you would a Blue if you are running with plugs. One of the fun things about Stripers is multiple hookups are quite frequent. Unlike the Blue which is essentially a lone-wolf predator, the Stripers often travel in pairs; male and female. Stripers are often found away from the usual banks and bottom curves that many other fish hang around in, and most interestingly, the Stripers often school up in deep water hundreds of miles off shore (out of range of most day trips, but certainly within range of our Long Range Charters). Although not as large on average as the Blue, the Striper can be an awfully fun fish to play, especially on light tackle. Because of this, Sportfish Hawaii anglers like to switch to lighter tackle in areas where we believe Stripers are more prevalent than Blues.

Black Marlin - Makaira indica

Hawaiian Name: a'u Avg Weight: 200 lbs Fishing Method: Daytime trolling/Live Bait Best Fishing: Year-round (seldom caught) IGFA Record: 1,560lbs Cabo Blanco, Peru 8/4/53 State Record: 1,205lbs Red Hill, HI 1980

Black Marlin are very rare in Hawaiian waters; we only average about half a dozen or so a year throughout the whole state. It is thought that the Black Marlins that travel away from their "home" in Australia strayed following a school of bait and forgot the way back after the feeding frenzy dissipated. Not much is known about the breeding or feeding habits of the Black in Hawaii, and all of the Blacks landed are incidental catches while trolling or baiting for Blues. Blackies put up one heck of a fight.

Broadbill Swordfish - Xiphias gladius

Hawaiian Name: a'u ku Avg Weight: 100 lbs Fishing Method: Night hand line Best Fishing: May-September IGFA Record: 1,182lbs Iquique, Chile 5/7/53 State Record: 365lbs Kona, HI 1999

This fish is one of the reasons why Hawaii is able to provide such diversity to the Angling Adventurer. The Broadbill , a night fish caught using a lightstick at the end of the line (basically the same trolling methods, just done at night), supplements the Billfishing activity after everyone else has gone home. These fish are more abundant in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands than in the main islands; possibly as a result of overfishing by commercial fishermen. The Broadbill is a delicacy known as Shutome in Japan, and they have truly become a specific target of longliners looking for supplements to their stocks when the tuna bite is slow.

Shortbill Spearfish - Tetrapturus angustirostris

Hawaiian Name: a'u Avg Weight: 35 lbs Fishing Method: Daytime trolling/Live Bait Best Fishing: December-May IGFA Record: Info Unavailable State Record: 72lbs Kona, HI 1996

This fearless little predator is often a precursor to the Marlin. If a hook up with a Spearfish is made while trolling for other gamefish, pay attention to the direction the fish was headed, which you can sometimes tell by watching the strike or by the feel of which boat heading makes for a more difficult fight. It's important to know this information because if you know which way the fish was headed, you can often tell where he came from. Since the Spears and the Marlin eat the same food, once you know with some degree of accuracy where the Spear came from, you have a good chance of going in that direction to find the Marlin. If the Spears are schooling, the Blues will be right behind.

Pacific Sailfish - Istiophorus platypterus

Hawaiian Name: a'u lepe Avg Weight: 45 lbs Fishing Method: Daytime trolling/live bait Best Fishing: Year-round (seldom caught) IGFA Record: 221lbs Santa Cruz Island, Ecuador 2/12/47 State Record: 119lbs Kona, HI 1983

Don't spend too much time targeting Sailfish in Hawaii, because they are pretty rare. If you have light tackle and happen to run across one, play it and then actually say you intended to do it, the gang back at the dock will call you a liar. This beautiful species is one in a million in Hawaii, so if you get one, the best thing to do is immediately go buy a lottery ticket, because you are on a hot streak.

Billfish