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Today on Animal Fact Files we’re discussing tarpon. There are two species of living tarpon, the Atlantic tarpon and the Indo-Pacific tarpon, and their common names give away where they live. These are coastal fish, often found no deeper than 164 feet (50 m) below the waves, although they’re far more commonly seen at depths of 50 feet (15 m) or shallower. These fish are tolerant of a lot of changes. They can handle changes in salt, meaning they can live in freshwater. They can also handle changes in oxygen, meaning they can live in water that’s nearly devoid of oxygen. They don’t even need oxygen in the water, technically speaking, because they can breathe atmospheric air. In fact, it’s believed that these fish are required to breathe air from time to time or they’ll die. Tarpon have a modified swim bladder which allows them to gulp down air; of course, they can also use their gills to take oxygen from the water if it’s available. In fact, just about the only thing these fish can’t tolerate is a change in temperature. If the water gets too cold, they can die en masse.

Tarpon are also known as the silver king for their flashy silver side scales. These are large, and may also be used for jewelry and pearl making. Their back is blue to green but those living predominantly in freshwater take a brassy hue. Tarpon fins are typically darker than their silvery scales and their tail is deeply forked. The Atlantic species is larger, reaching up to 8 feet (2.5 m) long and 330 pounds (150 kg), although their average size is closer to half this. Indo-pacific tarpon max out at about 5 feet (1.5 m) long but only average just over 1 foot (30.5 cm) long and 40 pounds (18 kg) in weight. Females are larger than males and are documented to live longer. The ladies may live to be 50 years old while males swim around until they’re about 30 to 40.

Adult tarpon may inhabit coastal lagoons, mangroves, estuaries, and reefs, but they move to the open ocean to spawn. Females may lay upwards of 12 million eggs during this time, which is a lot of eggs. In comparison, another large fish species, such as the bluefin tuna, only releases about a sixth of this amount during their spawning events. Tarpon eggs are fertilized externally and carried towards shore by currents. The hatchings are transparent and look like eel larvae. These develop for about 4 to 6 months until they're juveniles, and they take 6 to 10 years before they reach sexual maturity. The babies often live in estuaries and even freshwater, although some tarpon live in freshwater their entire lives in places such as Lake Nicaragua.

Tarpon form schools. There are typically about a dozen individuals in the group, but upwards of 200 individuals have been seen swimming in a tarpon school. Considering their size, that would be a large mass of fish! Sometimes they even group up in caves or crevices where they patrol the entrance, which is honestly slightly terrifying to me. What secret tarpon meetings are they holding in there? These fish eat smaller fish and crustaceans. They only have small teeth throughout their mouth and throat, but they have a hard, bony plate to crush crab shells and anything else that isn’t swallowed whole. Most meals are swallowed whole though. Juvenile tarpon eat smaller fish and insects. The young are also more at risk to predators such as birds of prey. Adult tarpon are taken by sharks such as bull sharks and hammerheads as well as alligators and dolphins. Humans also catch them, although they’re only occasionally eaten– it really depends on the region. They’re sought after by recreational anglers because they put up a good fight. When hooked, they make massive leaps out of the water!

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