Giant trevally (GT, ulua)

The biggest trevally: deep, heavy silver-gray to almost black body (big males are very dark), a steep, blunt forehead, a strong forked tail with a narrow base and hard bony scutes along the tail, and no dark spot on the gill cover. Fins dark gray; tiny black specks on some fish.

15–60 lb; fish over 100 lb are true trophies.

About 5½ ft and about 175 lb (80 kg). The IGFA all-tackle record is 160 lb 7 oz (72.8 kg) from Japan's Tokara Islands.

Fish of all kinds, squid, octopus, lobsters and crabs; on some atolls they even catch young seabirds at the surface.

An aggressive, powerful hunter that patrols reef edges, channels, surf zones and flats, alone or in small groups. Big GTs crush surface lures in explosions of white water, then dive straight for the coral.

Found from Red Sea & Arabian Gulf (Egypt, Oman, UAE), East Africa & Indian Ocean Islands, Southern Africa, India, Sri Lanka, Maldives & Pakistan, Southeast Asia (Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam), Indonesia (Bali, Komodo, Raja Ampat, Sulawesi), Philippines, China, Hong Kong & Taiwan, Japan & South Korea, Queensland & the Great Barrier Reef, Northern Territory & Western Australia, South Pacific Islands & Papua New Guinea, Guam & Northern Mariana Islands, Hawaii and American Samoa. Coral reefs, atolls, channel mouths, rocky headlands, surf beaches, estuaries and sand flats from the Red Sea and South Africa across the Indian Ocean (Seychelles, Maldives, Mauritius, Madagascar, Oman) to Southeast Asia, Japan, Australia and the Pacific islands, including Hawaii.

Coral reefs, atolls, channel mouths, rocky headlands, surf beaches, estuaries and sand flats from the Red Sea and South Africa across the Indian Ocean (Seychelles, Maldives, Mauritius, Madagascar, Oman) to Southeast Asia, Japan, Australia and the Pacific islands, including Hawaii.

Knee-deep flats to about 300 ft.

Surface to 30 ft over reef edges and in channels; deeper reefs with jigs.

Year-round in the tropics; seasons vary — for example, about October to May in the Seychelles outer islands, and spring and autumn on the Red Sea and Oman coasts.

Dawn and dusk are prime, but GTs feed all day on a moving tide.

Strong moving tides — especially the outgoing tide pulling bait out of lagoons and channels.

Some wind and chop on the reef edge helps hide your boat and lure.

Live fish (bonito, mullet, scad) and whole squid.

Big poppers and stickbaits (5–9 in) are the classic; also heavy metal jigs and big flies (brush flies, baitfish patterns) on the flats.

Heavy GT popping rod (PE 6–10) with a big 14000–20000 spinning reel and a locked-down drag; 12–14 weight fly rod on the flats.

Extra-strong single hooks on poppers (many lodges require barbless singles).

80–130 lb braid.

130–200 lb monofilament.

Cast a popper as far as you can over the reef edge or channel mouth, and work it with long, hard sweeps that throw a big splash, pausing between pulls. When a GT hits, lock up and pull hard — you have a few seconds to turn it before it reaches the coral.

Never stop your popper when a GT chases it — keep it moving fast. If it misses, keep going; GTs often come back for a second try.

Catch and release: wet your hands, keep the fish in the water when you can, and release it quickly. Use circle hooks and a dehooker.

Edible but not prized — strong or bony; many anglers release it.

Bleed and ice it right away. Fillet, then remove the skin and any dark bloodline.

Small GTs are eaten as sashimi or grilled, but big fish are coarse, dark and carry the ciguatera risk — release them.

GTs are a known ciguatera risk, especially big fish from some islands — most anglers release them. Hard scutes and fin spines cut hands; use gloves. Reef walking means sharp coral, stonefish and sea urchins — wear wading boots.

South Africa limits trevallies (Caranx) to 5 per person per day; many Indian Ocean lodges (Seychelles, Maldives liveaboards, Sudan, Oman) are strictly catch-and-release, and many reefs are marine parks. Check local rules. Rules are set by each country and state — from licenses and bag limits in South Africa, Australia and the Gulf states to marine parks across the Indian Ocean and Pacific where fishing is limited or banned — check the local regulations where you fish.

Big GTs are mostly females and can be decades old. Use single barbless hooks, keep fights short and revive them before release.