super exciting catch today from my SUP with super light tackle.
This Barracuda was fighting like crazy and I'm surprised I didn't loose it since I was using only 15 pound braided line directly tied to my jig head. It was caught on a trusty old gulp lime tiger softbait.

Nice catch

Thanks for sharing the video.

I wonder if we can eat barracuda. I have not heard or seen eating them.

Yes, you can

I have never eaten them, so I cannot comment on what they are like to eat.

They do sometime carry...I forget what it is called...a worm type bacteria that can make you sick. Very rare in smaller fish.

I cannot remember what it is called. It is more common in barracuda, GT's, queenfish etc...the pelagics that like to sometimes come into shallow waters.

The size of the one Mark has caught would be safe to eat, I reckon

Barracuda are predators and good to eat. They are boney so you will want to fillet. We catch them off the coast of California regularly. I recommend placing fillets, seasoned or marinated to your taste, on lemons or limes on aluminum foil on the grill.
Very good.

thanks for the reply Fishonaz,

do the Barracudas in California have parasitic worms in them?

The story over here is that many of them are infected with those parasites, making the flesh less appealing. I have never seen those worms myself but apparently they are visible as long white strings in the flesh, especially near the gut cavity.

Hi Mark. Nice catch but I'm pretty sure that is not a barracuda. They are patterned (stripes), don't have that long dorsal fin and the tooth pattern is different to the fish you caught. I'm not from your part of the world so don't know what species are in your area but here in South Africa off the Cape Point we have a fish called Snoek (Thyrsites atun) which looks very similar. Maybe it is a branch of this species? See picture:

Hi blackwatch,

I think you are spot on. It's a bit confusing with the distinction between Barracouta and Barracuda.
Barracuda seems to be the tropical version while in New Zealand, Australia and South Africa they are Barracoutas (Thyrsites atun) or what you call Snoek over there. Looks like a lot of people ( obviously including me ? ) don't know this distinction.

I always though that there is only Barracuda and that is that. Who the heck had the idea to call one species Barracuda and the other species Barracouta? ?

Although they look a bit similar to the untrained eye.

Thanks for bringing this up.

With the ones you catch in SA - do they also have those parasitic worms in them?

Probably the same person that named a possum an opossum, only to find later that the opossum is actually a different animal to the possum

haha ??