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Wahoo
Species Information
| Scientific Name: | Acanthocybium solandri |
| Common Names: | wahoo |
| Environment: | Offshore |
| Ideal Temp: | 72-80°F (22-27°F) |
About Wahoo
The wahoo is a scombrid fish found worldwide in tropical and subtropical seas. There are indications of seasonal concentrations off the Pacific coasts of Panama, Costa Rica and Baja California in the summer, off Grand Cayman (Atlantic) in the winter and spring, and off the western Bahamas and Bermuda in the spring and fall. It is best known to sports fishermen, as its speed and high-quality flesh make it a prize game fish. In Hawaii, the wahoo is known as ono. Many Hispanic areas of the Caribbean and Central America refer to this fish as peto.
The body is elongated and covered with small, scarcely visible scales; the back is an iridescent blue, while the sides are silvery, with a pattern of irregular vertical blue bars and have razor sharp teeth.These colors fade rapidly at death. The mouth is large, and both the upper and lower jaws have a somewhat sharper appearance than those of king or Spanish mackerel. Specimens have been recorded at up to 2.5 metres (8 ft 2 in) in length. Growth can be rapid. One specimen tagged at 5 kilograms (11 lb) grew to 15 kg (33 lb) in one year. Wahoo can swim up to 60 mph (97 km/h). They are some of the fastest fish in the sea.
The wahoo may be distinguished from the related Atlantic king mackerel and from the Indo-Pacific Narrow-barred Spanish mackerel by a fold of skin which covers the mandible when its mouth is closed. In contrast, the mandible of the king mackerel is always visible as is also the case for the smaller Spanish mackerel and Cero mackerel. The teeth of the wahoo are similar to those of king mackerel, but shorter and more closely set together.
The barracuda is sometimes confused with mackerel and wahoo, but is easy to distinguish from the latter two species. Barracuda have prominent scales, larger, dagger-like teeth, and lack the caudal keels and blade-like tail characteristic of the scombrid (mackerel).
Wahoo tend to be solitary or occur in loose-knit groups of two or three fish, but where conditions are suitable can be found in schools as large as 100 or more. Their diet is made up of other fish and squid.
It is found around wrecks and reefs where smaller fish that it feeds upon are abundant, but it may also be found far out at sea. The first scorching run may peel off several hundred yards of line in seconds. Occasionally this fish jumps on the strike and often shakes its head violently when hooked in an effort to free itself. Fishing methods include trolling with whole, rigged baits as well as with strip baits or artificial lures. Live bait fishing and kite fishing are productive, but the wahoo is a relatively scarce species and is usually taken incidentally while fishing for other oceanic species. The wahoo has commercial importance in some countries. The flesh is finely grained and sweet and is considered excellent eating.
Targeting
Ballyhoo rigged behind Islander type lures trolled near the surface are popular methods. Purple/Black and Red/Black lures are most popular. Run at least 50# mono or braid with shock leader. Run 5 baits/lures in the spread with 2 teasers (squid/daisy chain).
Wahoo Fishing
| World Record: | 83.46 kg (184 lb 0 oz) Cabo San Lucas, Mexico |
| # Fish Caught: | 225274 documented in database. |
| Earliest Record: | 7/2/1832 12:00:00 AM and located at -19.67833, 63.42027. |
| Latest Record: | 4/4/2025 2:06:12 AM and located at -31.82141, 115.73853. |
| Common Techniques: | Trolling |
| Popular Lure Types: | Trolling |
| Fishing Spots: | 5642 Wahoo fishing spots. |
Latest Wahoo Fishing Reports and Spots
GORDO BANKS PANGASNovember 23rd 2025 We are now winding down the busy fall season. As we head into Thanksgiving week we are seeing more families (
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11/19 - 11/21/2025 9:33:39 PM
Scratched away at wahoo for most of the day. Fishing was definitely on the slow side but we will be in a new area tomorrow. TEAM RP (
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11/20 - 11/21/2025 9:37:05 PM
Great day of Wahoo fishing! We did a lot of driving around but eventually found the fish and made sure everyone has tagged some wahoo. We plan o (
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11/21 - 11/21/2025 9:42:40 PM
Epic day of wahoo fishing today! We were stopping on fish pretty steady throughout the day. Tons of action for everyone on the boat. We will spe (
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11/22 - 11/22/2025 8:38:48 PM
Fished the first half of today and tagged a mix of Yellowtail Yellowfin Tuna Wahoo and more. We are currently driving up the coast and will be f (
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96 Recfishwest's Statewide Fishing Report - 21 November 2025 All the best tips and photos on what's biting across WA including forecasts gear u (
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GORDO BANKS PANGASNovember 16th 2025 The week started off great with a hot wahoo bite at Iman. On Monday many of our boats came in with 4-6 waho (
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11/18 - 11/18/2025 9:15:19 PM
We started off our day with some fun Yellowtail fishing along the coast. We eventually ventured offshore and had some good action on some nice s (
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Pisces Weekly Fishing Report 11-7 to 11-13-25 Overall Catch Success Rate All Species Combined 90.77% Success Trips 92% Billfish 37.33% Dorado 3 (
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OFFSHORE- Another relatively nice forecast for this time of year coming up this weekend. Sailfish action has started to improve locally with mos (
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