Black Marlin

This little beauty was tagged on board Horizon.  You can see the tag attached and the anglers are about to release the bill fish after reviving it.

Well here is an interesting picture. The fish is huge but yours truly can’t tell if it is a Blue or Black Marlin. As you can see the head has been ravaged by a shark which has removed the starboard pectoral fin. As one of the main discerning factors between a black or blue is the fact that black marlin have rigid pectoral fins, I cannot tell. Can you help me Charles?

Skipper & owner, Charles Wheeler shakes the hand of a very happy angler as they stand with a huge Black Marlin between them on the gantry.