The author's big Needlefish from Bahia Solano, Colombia
Giant Needlefish
Family Belonidae
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Giant Needlefish Description
Giant Needlefish live in tropical areas all around the world. They can live in saltwater, brackish water, and even freshwater. They tend to stay and hunt near the surface using their long, tooth-filled mouths to terrorize small baitfish. They are found in shallow areas and if you fish in the tropics near the shore you will hook one eventually. Keeping them hooked is another matter, as their bony mouths repel hooks pretty well and they usually jump continuously and shake their heads to try to dislodge the hooks. Many of the ones I have landed have actually been "lassoed" by having wrapped the line around their mouths and having the hook catch on the line. That is the best way to keep them hooked although I don't know how you would do that on purpose.
I don't know of anyone specifically fishing for these, but they are actually a great sportfish on light tackle. They jump like little marlin when hooked and put up a nice fight. They are not too picky and are often biting when nothing else is. They get up to around 6 feet long and a big one is a fun fish to tangle with on light tackle near shore. Once you land these guys the fun begins as they flap around wildly snapping their jaws at you. Most of them are unceremoniously kicked back into the ocean.
On rare occasions there have been instances of people getting speared by the sharp pointy mouths of these guys as they jump out of the water. In fact, there have been two deaths reportedly attributed to people getting stabbed by them. They can often be seen greyhounding over the water towards your bait or lure as they attack.
Giant Needlefish Pound for Pound Fight Rating - 7 out of 10 on the Saltwater Scale
Although they are often cursed at when hooked because people are looking for more glamorous fish, Giant Needlefish actually put up a great fight. They leap and shake their heads and greyhound like mini-marlin. They are difficult to keep hooked because of their bony mouths. They are slender and don't have a lot of weight to pull with, but they do a good job using what they have.
Giant Needlefish Culinary Rating - Low
I have never eaten them, but I hear they taste ok but have a lot of small bones. They are not highly regarded as a food fish and are usually thrown back.
Giant Needlefish Tackle
I would recommend a light weight saltwater spinning setup rated 10-20lbs or so. You don't need a lot of specialized tackle to catch these guys. When hooked they stay near the surface and don't go into rocks so you really don't need very heavy tackle to land them. Just let them jump around and tire themselves out (and hopefully throw the hook so you don't have to mess with trying to unhook them).
Giant Needlefish Techniques
Needlefish are readily caught with both baits and lures. They are aggressive fish and will often come from 100 feet away or more to attack something shiny that looks like food. They actually are easier to catch on lures than bait in my opinion because they tend to mouth baits for a long time before swallowing them and often just tear the baits apart without getting hooked. Lures with tail hooks tend to hook them pretty well.
Giant Needlefish Lures
Needlefish readily bite a number of different lures, usually if they are fished quickly and erratically. Shiny spoons work well but be careful using heavy lures because they jump a lot and if they throw a heavy spoon back at your head it might not end well. Jerkbaits like the Yo-Zuri Crystal Minnow work well.
If I were targeting bigger Needlefish specifically with lures I would probably get a 5”-7” plug like a Yo-Zuri Crystal Minnow or a Rapala X-Rap in a shiny color and cast and retrieve it erratically while working along the edge of any tropical reef. I have never targeted them specifically but have caught quite a few while doing this for other species.
Giant Needlefish Baits
Needlefish will bite most silver colored baitfish but as noted above are hard to hook with bait. Usually they just ruin baits meant for other fish.
Where to get the big Needlefish
Any reef system in the tropical Pacific should have some nice ones. I have caught some nice ones in Mexico and Panama. I don't think anyone specifically targets them.
Other Giant Needlefish Resources
There is not much out there on these but check out Kelly & Kira's The Baja Catch for some info.
Family Belonidae
HOME
Other Species
Giant Needlefish Description
Giant Needlefish live in tropical areas all around the world. They can live in saltwater, brackish water, and even freshwater. They tend to stay and hunt near the surface using their long, tooth-filled mouths to terrorize small baitfish. They are found in shallow areas and if you fish in the tropics near the shore you will hook one eventually. Keeping them hooked is another matter, as their bony mouths repel hooks pretty well and they usually jump continuously and shake their heads to try to dislodge the hooks. Many of the ones I have landed have actually been "lassoed" by having wrapped the line around their mouths and having the hook catch on the line. That is the best way to keep them hooked although I don't know how you would do that on purpose.
I don't know of anyone specifically fishing for these, but they are actually a great sportfish on light tackle. They jump like little marlin when hooked and put up a nice fight. They are not too picky and are often biting when nothing else is. They get up to around 6 feet long and a big one is a fun fish to tangle with on light tackle near shore. Once you land these guys the fun begins as they flap around wildly snapping their jaws at you. Most of them are unceremoniously kicked back into the ocean.
On rare occasions there have been instances of people getting speared by the sharp pointy mouths of these guys as they jump out of the water. In fact, there have been two deaths reportedly attributed to people getting stabbed by them. They can often be seen greyhounding over the water towards your bait or lure as they attack.
Giant Needlefish Pound for Pound Fight Rating - 7 out of 10 on the Saltwater Scale
Although they are often cursed at when hooked because people are looking for more glamorous fish, Giant Needlefish actually put up a great fight. They leap and shake their heads and greyhound like mini-marlin. They are difficult to keep hooked because of their bony mouths. They are slender and don't have a lot of weight to pull with, but they do a good job using what they have.
Giant Needlefish Culinary Rating - Low
I have never eaten them, but I hear they taste ok but have a lot of small bones. They are not highly regarded as a food fish and are usually thrown back.
Giant Needlefish Tackle
I would recommend a light weight saltwater spinning setup rated 10-20lbs or so. You don't need a lot of specialized tackle to catch these guys. When hooked they stay near the surface and don't go into rocks so you really don't need very heavy tackle to land them. Just let them jump around and tire themselves out (and hopefully throw the hook so you don't have to mess with trying to unhook them).
Giant Needlefish Techniques
Needlefish are readily caught with both baits and lures. They are aggressive fish and will often come from 100 feet away or more to attack something shiny that looks like food. They actually are easier to catch on lures than bait in my opinion because they tend to mouth baits for a long time before swallowing them and often just tear the baits apart without getting hooked. Lures with tail hooks tend to hook them pretty well.
Giant Needlefish Lures
Needlefish readily bite a number of different lures, usually if they are fished quickly and erratically. Shiny spoons work well but be careful using heavy lures because they jump a lot and if they throw a heavy spoon back at your head it might not end well. Jerkbaits like the Yo-Zuri Crystal Minnow work well.
If I were targeting bigger Needlefish specifically with lures I would probably get a 5”-7” plug like a Yo-Zuri Crystal Minnow or a Rapala X-Rap in a shiny color and cast and retrieve it erratically while working along the edge of any tropical reef. I have never targeted them specifically but have caught quite a few while doing this for other species.
Giant Needlefish Baits
Needlefish will bite most silver colored baitfish but as noted above are hard to hook with bait. Usually they just ruin baits meant for other fish.
Where to get the big Needlefish
Any reef system in the tropical Pacific should have some nice ones. I have caught some nice ones in Mexico and Panama. I don't think anyone specifically targets them.
Other Giant Needlefish Resources
There is not much out there on these but check out Kelly & Kira's The Baja Catch for some info.
Giant Needlefish have a pointy, hard mouth that is filled with teeth.
Here's a big bait stealer
Rarely are Giant Needlefish the target species, and sometimes they can tear up baits meant for other audiences.
Needlefish caught in Panama on a jig.