Big Fish
Atlantic Tarpon
Megalops atlanticus · Bony fish, family Megalopidae
Tarpon are armored in the ocean's shiniest currency: scales like minted coins, a scoop jaw set in permanent skepticism, eyes the size of golf balls. By day they hover in silver rows inside Cayman grottos and cenote mouths, unbothered by divers a fin's length away; by night they turn into muscle and reflex, using dive lights as hunting lamps and hitting baitfish with strikes you feel as pressure. The species barely registers as food fish through much of its range (the sport is in the jump, anglers say), which leaves big, old, diver-tolerant schools decorating the Caribbean's ledges like heirlooms.
Onde e quando ver um
"Residente" significa que a maioria dos mergulhos naquele destino os encontra; "sazonal" significa presença confiável nos meses listados; qualquer outra coisa é um bônus, não um plano.
| Destino | Fiabilidade | Meses | Notas |
|---|---|---|---|
| CozumelMexico | Resident: seen on most dives | Todo o ano | |
| Riviera Maya & the CenotesMexico | Resident: seen on most dives | Todo o ano | |
| BonaireBonaire | Resident: seen on most dives | Todo o ano | |
| Grand CaymanCayman Islands | Resident: seen on most dives | Todo o ano | |
| Florida KeysUnited States | Resident: seen on most dives | Todo o ano |
Melhor mês, em resumo
Entendendo-os
Habitat: Coastal waters, lagoons, mangrove channels, and reef overhangs; gulps surface air with a modified swim bladder, which lets it thrive in stagnant backwaters
Distribuição: Western Atlantic from Virginia to Brazil including the entire Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico, plus tropical West Africa
Comportamento: Daytime tarpon idle in packs under ledges, in cavern mouths, and beneath docks, all mirror-chrome scales and disdain, letting divers approach within touching distance. At night they switch on: riding dive lights to ambush silversides, detonating through bait clouds in silver flashes. The rolling surface gulp of air is the species' signature.
Dieta: Schooling fish and crustaceans, taken in explosive inhaling strikes, mostly at night
Tamanho: normalmente cerca de 1.5 m; documentado até 2.5 m (total length; large females exceed 100 kg).
Como se comportar perto de um
On night dives, hold your beam steady and off other divers so hunting fish work the edge of it rather than the group; no feeding, and no crowding cavern schools against the rock.
Conservação
Vulnerable: a slow-growing, late-maturing fish pressured by harvest in parts of Latin America and West Africa and by loss of mangrove nurseries; largely catch-and-release where the sport fishery rules.
Pontos mapeados conhecidos por eles
Os locais destacados foram cartografados para esta espécie pelos nossos editores; os números são registos de ocorrência do GBIF num raio de cerca de 5 km do local desde 1990.
Assista
Dos canais oficiais
Wildlife of Monterey | New film in our auditorium
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Live Aviary Cam | Monterey Bay Aquarium
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