Atlantic Bonito
Atlantic Bonito (Sarda sarda) is a saltwater species. The first thing to check: dark oblique stripes running forward and downward from the back onto the upper flank — straight lines, not wavy scribbles. The look-alike to rule out is Little Tunny: false albacore have wavy worm-like markings confined above the lateral line and fingerprint spots on the belly.
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| Scientific name | Sarda sarda |
|---|---|
| Also called | bonito, boston mackerel, katonkel |
| Water | Saltwater |
| Group | Tuna |
| Temperature | Follows the 63 to 77 °F band, running slightly cooler than little tunny. |
How to identify an Atlantic Bonito
- Dark oblique stripes running forward and downward from the back onto the upper flank — straight lines, not wavy scribbles.
- Small but distinct conical teeth, which little tunny effectively lack.
- A fully scaled body, where a little tunny is bare apart from the shoulder corselet.
If you would rather not work through a key on a wet deck, photograph the fish and let the app name it — you get the common and the scientific name back, and the record is filed before you release.
Fish it is mistaken for
| Species | How to tell them apart |
|---|---|
| Little Tunny | False albacore have wavy worm-like markings confined above the lateral line and fingerprint spots on the belly. |
| Skipjack Tuna | Skipjack stripes run horizontally along the belly, not obliquely across the back. |
Side-by-side comparisons
Read the full entry for Little Tunny and Skipjack Tuna.
Where it lives
The Atlantic coast on seasonal migrations, mixing with little tunny in the same blitzes off beaches, inlets and nearshore structure.
Temperature
Follows the 63 to 77 °F band, running slightly cooler than little tunny.
The conditions that matter
Bonito arrive and leave on water temperature, and because they run a couple of degrees cooler than albies they often show first in the season and mix with them at the margins. Both are bait-driven; clean water and a tide moving bait past a point are what put them in range.
Global Fishing League records 18 weather and water readings against every catch automatically — tide stage, barometric pressure, water temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen, chlorophyll, swell, current, moon phase and more, taken at your GPS position at the moment you log the fish. Over a season that turns a hunch about atlantic bonito into a pattern you can read.
See every reading recorded with a catch, or the guides to what each reading means.
Size limits, bag limits and seasons
Size limits, bag limits, slot limits and seasons are set by your state wildlife agency — and for many offshore and migratory species by federal regulators — and on many waters they differ from the statewide rule. They also change between seasons. Check the current regulations for the exact water you are fishing before you keep a fish — we do not republish limits here, because a number that is a season out of date is worse than no number.
What the app does do is make your side of it accurate: every catch carries a length measured from the photograph, a GPS position and a timestamp, exportable if you ever need to show your work for a tournament or a record claim. It is also what a Global Fishing League entry is built from — a record that verifies itself, without publishing where you caught the fish.