Indo-Pacific blue marlin or Pacific blue marlin

Makaira mazara
There is some debate as to whether the Indo-Pacific blue marlin (Makaira mazara) is a separate species to the Atlantic blue marlin (Makaira nigricans).

Aguja Azul

Description

The pacific blue marlin is cobalt-blue on top and silvery-white on the bottom, with a large dorsal fin and a stout, long, spear like upper jaw.

Catching this strong and powerful bill fish is considered the ultimate in sports fishing challenges; it is renowned for putting up a terrific fight when hooked.

These beautiful fish are generally found in blue, deep oceanic waters off Costa Rica, being migratory; they follow the warm ocean currents, blue marlin is usually found in waters warmer than 75 °F (24 °C), consequently December and January are the best months to catch blue marlin off Herradura.

Blue marlin weighs in the range 150lbs to 1,000lbs, with the average specimens caught weighing in the region of 200 lbs to 400lbs, males rarely exceed 300lbs while females can exceed 1000lbs, average lengths tend to be in the range of 9 ft (3.3 m) to 12 ft (3.6 m). Some commercially caught examples have been over 16 ft (5 m) and weighing up to 2000lbs (900 kg), the largest fish caught by sports fishers was a 1,805 lb pacific blue marlin caught off Hawaii, fish over 1,000 lbs (450 kg) are called granders.

Bait, Lure and Tackle

The blue marlin is an eclectic eater and feeds on tuna-like fishes, squids, and crustaceans.
Pacific blue marlins are caught using skipjack tuna or troling with artifical lures.