Please ID this fish caught in the Tampa area

nightfly · February 12

Looks like a really big pinfish

Jack Hexter · February 12

Mojarra Diapterus auratus Great snook bait

Image: http://www.fishbase.de/tools/UploadPhoto/uploads/Irishpompano.JPG

clarosa · February 12

Def not a mojo..looks like a huge pinfish but missing the anal spines unless they are folded down.

Kokosing Lover · February 12

The anal spines are folded down, and yeah, that is a big honking pinfish. You'll see them that big in public aquariums sometimes, but coming across them that large in the wild is pretty uncommon.

clarosa · February 12

Kokosing Lover said:

The anal spines are folded down, and yeah, that is a big honking pinfish. You'll see them that big in public aquariums sometimes, but coming across them that large in the wild is pretty uncommon.

I was waiting for you to chime in for clarification. We were catching some large ones int he 6-8" range offshore last week but definitely nothing that big. That one looks over 12"!

Kokosing Lover · February 12

They should start their spawn pretty soon of this warm weather persists. They usually spawn about a month before the sheepshead really start their spawning run. My lime tree has declared that winter is over, and it's never been wrong before.

Capt Hansen · February 13

My friend that caught it showed the picture to a guy at a local tackle shop, he also thought it was a giant pin.

HOME DEPOT GEORGE · February 13

I think it might be a chub

conchydong · February 13

Not a Chub, I think it may be a world record Pinfish. The feint blackspot above the upper gill plate is indicative of a Pin. I ain't no expert though.

SeaSearcher · February 13

They are about that big at Port of Tampa, don't ask me how I know

clarosa · February 13

It could be close to the world record..I know the record is just under 2lbs

Gypsies Call · February 13

So... I'll chime in... they taste good, and that one would perhaps have filets that have some meat on them... lol!

Kokosing Lover · February 13

Gypsies Call said:

So... I'll chime in... they taste good, and that one would perhaps have filets that have some meat on them... lol!

Wrong fish for filets; head, guts, fins and scales off, dredge in flour and deep fry like a bluegill.

tankard · February 13

I caught one about that size at an inshore hole on the east coast once.

I planned on eating it but my friend shamed me out of it.

I should have ignored him, they're just another porgy.

danny d · February 14

It’s a pinfish

DoubleD! · February 14

Its a Sea Bream (Archosargus rhomboidalis)

BK922 · February 14

Not a sea bream but my first thought as well. Lateral line running through the middle of shoulder spot makes it a pinfish, a sea bream spot would be lower, with the LL running through the top 1/3 of the spot, also they usually have more orange in their stripes as well as pelvic and anal fins. See sea bream below. Mainly an east coast species, in 30 years of pulling nets in Tampa Bay the fisheries independent monitoring program has caught 1 sea bream, and thousands (millions?) of pinfish.

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/6030354/uploads/editor/d0/wzsoewfxn47b.jpg

Kokosing Lover · February 15

BK922 said:

Not a sea bream but my first thought as well. Lateral line running through the middle of shoulder spot makes it a pinfish, a sea bream spot would be lower, with the LL running through the top 1/3 of the spot, also they usually have more orange in their stripes as well as pelvic and anal fins. See sea bream below. Mainly an east coast species, in 30 years of pulling nets in Tampa Bay the fisheries independent monitoring program has caught 1 sea bream, and thousands (millions?) of pinfish.

FIM fairly regularly catches 1000's on pinfish in a single haul, so I would put the number in the millions. Never seen a sea bream in our area.

Please ID this fish caught in the Tampa area

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