Divefree

Fish

Big Eye Tuna

Thunnus obesus

A heavy-bodied deep-ranging tuna often mistaken for yellowfin, working the water column from the surface down to about 250 m.

Also known as grootoog- tuna

Big Eye Tuna
Photo: Bobby McCabe · CC BY 4.0
Typical size
Attains over 200 cm fork length
Habitat
Oceanic, epipelagic to mesopelagic
Depth
Surface to 250 m

The bigeye tuna is frequently confused with the yellowfin but is a heavier, thicker-set fish with shorter second dorsal and anal fins. It grows past 200 cm fork length, and the all-tackle record is a 197.3 kg fish from Cabo Blanco, Peru, taken in 1957.

Oceanic and both epipelagic and mesopelagic, it ranges from the surface down to around 250 m, following cool, prey-rich layers deeper than most of its relatives. It is an important gamefish wherever it occurs.