The offshore counterpart of the inshore Croaker, a hook up with a bonito/ skipjack it fun till you discover what on the end of your line! A distant relative of the Tuna family this is one Tuna that doesn't quite make the cut when Chicken of the Sea is selecting tuna for their company, SORRY CHARLIE!!!! In other words although it may put a decent fight, if it ain't worth eating, it ain't worth the effort!!! The Skipjack does however have some redeeming qualities, one is they do afford the unfortunate angler with a little bit of rod bending action especially welcome on those days when nothing else seems to be hitting. Secondly, although not good to eat, they are fairly bloody. And make excellent chum for enticing other more desirable game fish in the gulf toward your boat. And lastly since they have a tendency to school like other tuna's they have the distinct ability to leap out of the water when chasing smaller bait fish, hence the name skipjack.
With colorful markings of greenish-blue back shadings to silvery sides, the Bonito with its strong bulldog build will put a bend on the old rod, especially on smaller tackle. And since their are found in the same waters you be trolling for bigger and better game fish like Kings, Dorado, and Wahoo. It does help break up the ho-hum hours spent in between the real action. The only problem with that is the old Murphy Law theory usually come into play in most cases. When you finally start to hook up with those species you are trying to catch. Mr. Bonito come along and steals the bait from the wanted game fish. He kinda reminds you of a dog that you teach to fetch a Frisbee. It can be fun for the first couple of weeks, but after awhile the constant throwing and fetching can tend to wear on ones nerves. Then you begin to wonder if teaching him to fetch the darn Frisbee was such a good idea after all while you imagine throwing the Frisbee out a high rise window!! FETCH THAT YOU GOOFY DOG!!!