# What is it?



## CComfort12 (Jan 24, 2012)

My buddy Marty and I went out Sunday AM bright and foggy, left from his place on okaloosa island and headed out the destin jetty in a 20' pontoon, couldnt of asked for a much better water condition unless you wanted to see further than 30'. We spent all day out and had a great time, on one of our catches I pulled this up, never seen one before, hard to tell but the top of its head is flat and about 2 1/2" wide, fish was about 18" long. Any ideas of what is was? 

Also, being new to fishing this area coming from the Chesapeake bay, we were bottom fishing, can you tell me what the rampid fish are with blue and yellow, seem to eat everything you throw out there, sized between 3 and 8 inches on average, we caught several sharks throwing them back out on bottom including this 7' sandbar, what a fight!

New to forum and have been reading for months, you guys do a great job helping us new locals as well as the comrardarie amongst you friends, terrific site.


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## JD7.62 (Feb 13, 2008)

The top fish is a lizard fish. The blue and yellow fish are probably pin fish, did they have sharp dorsal rays?

They could also be cocoa or beaugregory damsels if they didnt have sharp spines but youd have to be using tiny hooks for them!


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## lastcast (Oct 12, 2007)

Sounds like Pinfish, maybe pigfish.



And the pic is a Lizzard Fish.


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## ZombieKiller (Jul 26, 2010)

Lizardfish in the photos.


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## knowphish (Apr 26, 2010)

Yep!!! That's a Lizardfish. It's a very important part of the Inshore Trash Can Slam!!!!!!


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## CComfort12 (Jan 24, 2012)

Great thank you! Pigfish is what I thought I heard on head boat last summer so I will stick with that. They did have the spiny dorsal and when threatened pushed its ard gill plates out. Thanks again


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## CComfort12 (Jan 24, 2012)

I am notorious for a trash can slam, we picked up some cats (which blows my mind in the salt water), whatever this is called that just creeps me out, the lizard fish, skate


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## osborne311 (Aug 1, 2011)

It might be a squirrel fish and not a pin fish. Did it have a weird triple tail?


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## CComfort12 (Jan 24, 2012)

Not sure if you can tell but this is a few inthe bait well.


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## keperry1182 (Oct 6, 2010)

the one with wing things is a type of sea robin


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## jamessig (Oct 3, 2007)

http://www.fishing-boating.com/articles/baitprofiles.htm
Pinfish(chofers), pigfish(grunts), sand perch(squirrelfish), lizardfish and spotted pinfish are all fairly common catches off the jetties and are all decent live baits. You will also probably catch slippery dicks, sea robins and ladyfish which are worthless except for ladyfish which are good for chunk baits.


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## Bigfattybbq1 (Dec 12, 2010)

keperry1182 said:


> the one with wing things is a type of sea robin


I caught one of these under the Brooks Bridge Sunday. It is a sea robin and it's truly ugly.


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## Trophyhusband (Nov 30, 2011)

CComfort12 said:


> I am notorious for a trash can slam, we picked up some cats (which blows my mind in the salt water), whatever this is called that just creeps me out, the lizard fish, skate


That's a sea robin and makes great AJ bait.


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## BlackJeep (Jun 13, 2010)

+1 on Lizardfish and the sea robin. I caught a lizardfish over 2 feet long once at the Destin Bridge. Didn't want to touch it. Besides pinfish and pigfish, another possibility on the blue and yellow fish.... could be a sand perch. Especially if you picked it up on the bottom at >30' . They have bright teal or tourquoise lines in the gill plates and down the body. I'm told they're good for grouper and cobia.


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## osborne311 (Aug 1, 2011)

BlackJeep said:


> +1 on Lizardfish and the sea robin. I caught a lizardfish over 2 feet long once at the Destin Bridge. Didn't want to touch it. Besides pinfish and pigfish, another possibility on the blue and yellow fish.... could be a sand perch. Especially if you picked it up on the bottom at >30' . They have bright teal or tourquoise lines in the gill plates and down the body. I'm told they're good for grouper and cobia.


+1 Yes - If I had to guess this is what you caught. They are thick and voracious. Not sure why, but I was calling them squirrel fish.


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## BlackJeep (Jun 13, 2010)

osborne311 said:


> +1 Yes - If I had to guess this is what you caught. They are thick and voracious. Not sure why, but I was calling them squirrel fish.


Apparently they are also known as squirrelfish, but the squirrelfish I used to see diving off of Japan were completely different and were red.


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## MrFish (Aug 21, 2009)

Sand perch and squirrelfish are the same thing.


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## CComfort12 (Jan 24, 2012)

That is it, sand perch. We could'nt keep up with them, and they appearantly make great shark bait.

Thanks again everyone, help is much appreciated!


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