The mahi-mahi (in Hawaiian) is also known as dolphin-fish or dorado, calitos, maverikos, or lampuki (in Maltese). They are surface-dwelling ray-finned fish that are found in offshore temperate, tropical and subtropical waters worldwide. These fish are blue with a beautiful greenish-yellow color on their sides and belly. They also have areas of green on their back. Dolphin fish are found worldwide in warm ocean waters. These fish can grow to more than 70 pounds, but the average-sized fish that anglers catch will be around 15 pounds.
Mahi Mahi Fishing in the Amelia Island Area
Mahi Mahi are very migratory and they can travel at very fast speeds, which allows them to cover 20 to 40 miles in a day. As these fish move through the offshore waters out of Amelia Island, there will be plenty of charters targeting them. The Gulf Stream is about 60 to 70 miles out from Amelia Island, so it is a bit of a boat ride, but well worth it when these fish are here. The better fishing usually occurs in the spring and fall as they migrate through.
Mahi Mahi Fishing Tips
Trolling for mahi mahi is the most conventional way to catch these fish, but more and more anglers are sight fishing for mahi mahi. Because these fish are often found around large weed lines and many different types of floating debris, some anglers will go find these spots and chum these areas to see if they can attract some mahi mahi to the boat. This is very effective and if you hit it right, you could catch several mahi mahi very quickly in these situations.
Visit our Mahi Mahi fishing page to learn more.