The lifecycle of the silver king is mind boggling. With attributes like these, it’s no wonder tarpon can live to be over 50 years old and are dated in the fossil record as far back as 110 million years ago. This ability allows them to live in extreme low-oxygen environments and gives them a supercharged boost before chasing down prey, evading sharks or battling anglers. Not only are these unique fish potentially massive and insanely powerful, they’re also armor-plated, have a wide-ranging diet and can gulp oxygen from the atmosphere through their specialized swim bladder. Silver kings can reach maximum size of around 300 pounds and a total length of nearly 10 feet! Yet, even at this size, they can still summon the speed and power necessary to jump clear over your T-top!

They can be found throughout most of the tropical and subtropical zones on both sides of the Atlantic and, in the last hundred years or so, have even started to populate a portion of the Pacific within a few hundred miles of the Panama Canal.

“11 o’clock … here they come, great cast … HE’S GOT IT!!! REEL! REEL! REEL! REEL! LIFT UP and get ready to bow, now BOW!!! YEEOFrom land-locked ponds with nearly zero dissolved oxygen to freshwater rivers, estuaries and beaches, to hundreds of miles out at sea, tarpon have the ability to handle an extremely wide range of salinities and habitats. I’ve caught big GTs, giant cubera snapper and roosterfish on topwater, and I will tell you that the prestige of chasing the silver king is unsurpassed throughout the world’s coastal waters. Tarpon fishing is intense anticipation, frustration, despair, determination, elation, exhaustion, ecstasy, jubilation and Zen - all sometimes before 7 a.m. A group of spring migrating tarpon make a pit stop in Tampa Bay, where they are easily targeted by anglers looking to lock horns with some of the biggest silver kings found anywhere on the planet. Only the fortunate ones who have gotten a taste of their majesty thoroughly understand why they have been coined the “silver king.” For those aspiring anglers who have not yet been graced with the king’s presence, however, just know that the awe-inspiring feeling you get from mere pictures, TV shows and YouTube videos doesn’t even come close to the mind-numbing, adrenaline-pumping thrill of being there in person.

In the mountain of sportfishing, tarpon are at the summit.

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