The swimming speed of fish is usually determined by its size, shape, and build. Therefore, different fish cruise at different speeds. The three fastest fish in the world are the Black Marlin, Sailfish, and Striped Marlin. The speeds of the three fastest are all over 50 miles per hour. Not surprisingly they are all found in the ocean and not rivers.
#1 – Black Marlin
This is undoubtedly the fastest fish in the world. It can clock a swimming speed of about eighty miles per hour. That is why the Black Marlin holds the title of the king of the seas. It holds a special place on every game angler’s bucket list. If fishing were an Olympic sport, catching a black marlin would be an achievement that is worth a Gold Medal. This fish is commonly found throughout the Indian and Pacific Oceans. The most famous fishing hotspot for Black Marlin is Australia’s Great Barrier Reef which was given the name (The Mecca of Black Marlin fishing). Other fishing hotspots include Panama, Mexico, Costa Rica, Hawaii, and Mauritius. The largest Black Marlin fish caught measured about 15.3 feet and weighed 1650 pounds. Bearing in mind the kind of speed this fish swims at, you wonder why people still consider catching them.
In contrast with its close relatives, the Black Marlin fish does not waste its time and energy making tail walks, leaps, and show-offs. That is the reason fighting with one gets very intense because it has conserved a lot of energy. They do not tire easily hence you are most likely the one who will tire and let it go. Catching a Black Marlin is an awesome angling experience but one thing that is for sure, it’s not easy. You need to have the right gear, the right preparation, and good experience. The high speeds that it swims at only make catching them harder. The Black Marlin fish has a streamlined body which makes it reach top speeds quickly.
#2- Sailfish
This is the second fastest fish in the ocean. It clocks a top swimming speed of around 70 miles per hour. On seeing a sailfish for the first time, what will impress you the most is its beautiful dorsal fin. Sailfish are mostly found across tropical and subtropical zones of all oceans. If you seriously want to catch a sailfish, you can find them in Florida both on the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Coast, Hawaii, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, Curacao, Aruba, Bermuda, and Puerto Rico. The sailfish has a blue to a gray color with white underbellies. Their name is sourced from its beautiful dorsal fin which stretches approximately to the length of its body. This fish is a member of a fish family known as billfish. They do have an upper jaw which juts out quite well thus giving it a shape of a spear which adds to it ability to cut through the water. This fish is usually found close to the surface. They mostly feed on octopus and squid. The sailfish can grow to measure a length of eleven feet and weigh about 220 pounds. However, most measure a length of six to eight feet and weigh 40 to 60 pounds. It is worth noting that sailfish are very acrobatic. That means it will fight you with all it has displaying some incredible aggression of violent headshaking and jumping if you are fishing for them. This fish is also known for its tail-walking attributes. When you hook a sailfish, it will vigorously fight, diving and leaping continuously. It does not tire easily and has that no giving up the spirit in it. The population of Sailfish is abundant, and they aren’t under any threat of extinction. This means that they are not under any special protection or other sorts of status that is meant to guard them. The sailfish can live up to four years.
#3- Striped Marlin
This is the third fastest fish in the ocean. At its top swimming speed, it will clock about fifty miles per hour. This fish is known for its aerial prowess which anglers enjoy while trying to catch them. You can recognize this fish from its beautiful stripes on the sides of its body. If the fish feels excited, the color of the stripes turns violet and this makes it give an amazing hue. Their bodies are elongated and they also do have a pointed bill. They have black or dark blue backs as well as around sixteen bars on their lower body parts. They normally eat crustaceans, cephalopods, trevally, and small tunas and sardines. They also get preyed on toothed whales and large sharks.
The striped marlin is a fish that migrate quite often in an attempt to remain top of the food chain in the subtropical and tropical regions of the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is a member of the billfish family, like the Black Marlin. It has tough upper jaws that extend and form a spear.
Some of the most famous striper fisheries are found in the Galapagos, Peru, Ecuador, New Zealand, Australia, Hawaii, Costa Rica, Mexico, and South California. The striped marlin fish can grow to the lengths of fourteen feet and weigh about five hundred pounds. Their size usually varies based on the location you are looking for. You will notice an increase in size as you move towards the equator.
This type of fish may not be the most aggressive to put the best fight, but they are undeniably the one of the most beautiful fish you can find in water bodies. The moment you attempt reeling them, they will display incredible leaps, tail-walking, and long runs.
The Striped Marlin gets to the reproductive stage in about three years. Males mature earlier than females. Spawning usually occurs in the summer. The females can release eggs continuously for a few days and about forty spawning events do occur over the spawning season. The females can produce an incredible number of eggs over this season. It is estimated that they produce about one hundred and twenty million eggs during this time. The striped marlin fish normally slash their prey using their bill which is different from other fish that smash and impale their prey.
There you have it, the three fastest fish in the world, the Black Marlin, Sailfish, and the Striped Marlin. You can see that they swim at incredible speeds which is an amazing attribute.
