Present along both the Atlantic and Caribbean coast, tarpon are numerous on the saltwater flats, mangrove-lined rivers and along reef edges. A big silver fish with scales that are so silver that they look as if they have been poured from liquid mercury, the tarpon has a huge bucket-like mouth and a hinge jaw that enables it to swallow its prey whole and crush it at the back of its throat.

Cuban tarpon average five to thirty pounds in the rivers and on the flats but bigger fish are regularly seen and caught. Fish weighing up to and over one hundred pounds have been caught on spinning and fly tackle. Though harder to find, the biggest tarpon in Cuba are often found in the open ocean just off the reef edges. Trolling is the top method to catch them. A fantastic adversary, the tarpon has great strength and agility that is displayed in its acrobatic jumps.