Key West Jack Crevalle

The Jack Crevalle is a member of a large family of predatory fish and is related to the pompano and the amberjack. It has secondary anal and dorsal fins and a sickle shaped tail with a thin stem. The lateral line is curved at the front of the fish and it has a dark spot on the gills and on the pectoral fin. Found all over Key West.

The Basics

The Jack Crevalle is found in most warm waters around the world both close to the shore and in the ocean. It’s a small fish that is usually under two pounds, though a big one can grow to 55 pounds. When it’s young, it travels in small schools usually beneath floating objects. As the fish gets older it travels in schools in the open ocean, but the oldest Jack Crevalles are solitary. The Jack Crevalle is good eating, but the fisherman should be careful before eating it. The Jack Crevalle and other jacks have been known to be the source of the sometimes lethal ciguatera food poisoning.

Some people consider the Jack Crevalle found in the Pacific Ocean to be a different species.

How They Feed and What’s Unique

Jack Crevalles feed on other, smaller fish and squid. It’s different from other types of jacks because it has a domed head and a less streamlined body. Despite the fact that it’s a smallish fish it puts up a big fight when hooked.

How We Get Them

The Jack Crevalle can be caught through trolling, spinning and drifting. If the fisherman is going to use trolling and drifting, he should use a 30 pound class rod with a 4/0 baitcaster reel, a 30 pound mono line with a wire or a heavy mono leader. The single hooks should be between size 6/0 and 8/0. If spinning is employed, a heavy spinning rod and a big spinning reel should be used. The fisherman should also use a mono line between 15 and 20 pounds. The hook size should be 4/0 and 6/0 and should be a single hook.

Jack Crevalles are attracted by chumming, though when drifting or trolling artificial lures like spinners and plugs should be used. Other types of bait can be squid or fish, whether cut up or whole. Jack Crevalles are especially attracted to fish like pinfish, sardines and mullet. Plugs, spoons and spinners should be used for spinning.