Sport fishing
Prized by anglers. 292 fish on EveryFish so far.
Sport fishing, or recreational angling, is fishing for enjoyment rather than a living. Hundreds of millions of people fish this way, from children with a line in a pond to anglers who travel the world for marlin, tarpon or mahseer. Game fish are prized for their fight, size, wariness or the places they live. Catch and release, in which fish are returned alive, has become common for many species.
Game fish of India
The mahseers of the Himalaya and the Western Ghats are India's great game fish, known for their power in fast rivers. British anglers wrote about them from the 19th century, and camps on the Kaveri ran catch and release fishing for the hump-backed mahseer for decades. Trout introduced into Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and the Nilgiris draw anglers to cold streams. Sea anglers fish for giant trevally, barracuda and sailfish off Goa, Karnataka and the Andaman Islands.
Rules and conservation
Recreational fishing is a large industry in North America, Europe and Australia, and it funds a good deal of fish conservation through licence fees. Anglers can also put real pressure on stocks, so many countries set seasons, bag limits and minimum sizes. The International Game Fish Association, founded in 1939, keeps world records and promotes ethical angling. Catch and release survival depends on careful handling, short fights and quick return.
Famous sport fishing fish
Golden mahseerThe golden mahseer of Himalayan rivers
Orange-finned mahseerThe hump-backed mahseer of the Kaveri
Atlantic blue marlinA giant billfish prized by sea anglers
Atlantic tarponA leaping fish of warm coasts
Largemouth bassAmerica's most popular sport fish
Brown troutStocked for anglers across the world
Giant trevallyA powerful reef predator
BonefishA fast fish of tropical flatsFurther reading
WorldDogtooth tuna
A large Indo-Pacific bonito prized by sport anglers.Tuna · Coasts and shelves
🇳🇴 Norway and 2 moreAtlantic mackerel
Fast-swimming, oily fish of the North AtlanticTuna · Coasts and shelves · 1758
WorldBlue mackerel
A small, fast pelagic fish found in tropical Indo-Pacific waters.Tuna · Coasts and shelves
WorldLittle tunny
A fast, coastal tuna of the Atlantic and Mediterranean.Tuna · Coasts and shelves · 1810
WorldAtlantic bonito
A mackerel-like game fish of the Atlantic and Mediterranean.Tuna · Coasts and shelves
🇺🇸 United States and 3 morePacific bonito
Striped marine fish of the Pacific coastTuna · Coasts and shelves
🇿🇦 South Africa and 4 moreSnoek
A long, thin snake mackerel found in the Southern Hemisphere seas.Tuna · Coasts and shelves · 1791
🇯🇵 Japan and 1 moreJapanese jack mackerel
A silver coastal fish prized in East Asian cuisine.Tuna · Coasts and shelves
🇦🇺 Australia and 4 moreNarrow-barred Spanish mackerel
Large Indo-Pacific mackerel with narrow vertical barsTuna · Coasts and shelves
WorldTuna
A group of fast-swimming saltwater fish known for their speed and commercial importance.Tuna · Open ocean
WorldAlbacore
A large, long-finned tuna species known for its white meat and global distribution.Tuna · Coasts and shelves · 1788
WorldMackerel
A group of pelagic fish known for their speed, stripes, and role in global fisheries.Tuna · Open ocean
🇺🇸 United States and 1 moreKing mackerel
A large, fast-swimming predatory fish of the western Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico.Tuna · Coasts and shelves
WorldAtlantic bluefin tuna
Large, warm-blooded tuna of the Atlantic and Mediterranean.Tuna · Open ocean · 1758
WorldYellowfin tuna
Fast tropical tuna with bright yellow finsTuna · Open ocean
🇺🇸 United States and 1 moreAtlantic Spanish mackerel
Migratory mackerel with yellow spots found in the Gulf and Atlantic.Tuna · Coasts and shelves
🇲🇻 Maldives and 4 moreSkipjack tuna
A fast-swimming tropical tuna vital to global fisheries.Tuna · Open ocean
WorldPacific bluefin tuna
Large migratory tuna of the northern Pacific OceanTuna · Open ocean
WorldWahoo
Fast tropical game fish with blue barsTuna · Open ocean
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Dogtooth tuna: Diego Delso, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Atlantic mackerel: Hans Hillewaert, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Blue mackerel: Izuzuki, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Largemouth bass: Totti, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Golden mahseer: Khalid Mahmood, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Brown trout: Duane Raver, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Public domain, source
- Little tunny: Xavier Romero-Frias, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Atlantic bonito: Etrusko25, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Pacific bonito: nmoorhatch, CC BY 4.0, source
- Snoek: Brian Gratwicke, CC BY 2.0, source
- Japanese jack mackerel: Izuzuki, CC BY 2.5, source
- Bonefish: Brian Gratwicke, CC BY 2.0, source
- Giant trevally: Dr. Dwayne Meadows, NOAA/NMFS/OPR, Public domain, source
- Atlantic tarpon: Daiju Azuma, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Orange-finned mahseer: A. J. T. Johnsingh, WWF-India and NCF, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Narrow-barred Spanish mackerel: ppericard, CC BY 4.0, source
- Tuna: G. H. Ford, Public domain, source
- Albacore: Hugues Evano (IFREMER, Délégation océan Indien (DOI), Département Ress, CC BY 4.0, source
- Mackerel: Jastrow, Public domain, source
- King mackerel: Stephen Ewen, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Atlantic bluefin tuna: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Yellowfin tuna: OAR/National Undersea Research Program (NURP), Public domain, source
- Atlantic Spanish mackerel: SEFSC Pascagoula Laboratory; Collection of Brandi Noble, NOAA/NMFS/SEF, Public domain, source
- Skipjack tuna: Karg se, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Pacific bluefin tuna: aes256, CC BY 2.1 jp, source
- Wahoo: The U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Public domain, source
- Atlantic blue marlin: NOAA, Public domain, source