Fishing trips are a great way to have fun and relax while also catching fresh food for a scrumptious meal. This is most especially true if you go on fishing trips offshore or along the coastal areas. The ocean is home to a thousand different species of fish and other marine animals and a lot of them are caught for us to eat them. Some species can be easily caught by anglers and some need an experienced crew of fishermen using more advanced fishing equipment just to be caught.

If you’re working on your way to catching fresh saltwater fish the next time, you’re out in the sea on your fishing plate boats, you may want to consider catching the most common fish species in the ocean. These fishes are common because they are abundant and can be found virtually anywhere. Chances are, you may catch these fishes easily on every fishing trip you will have.

Here is a list of the fish species you can commonly find in the ocean that you can catch on your next fishing trip:

Anchovy

When you think of anchovy, you think of it as a pizza topping or a condiment used to flavour meals. There’s no doubt that most of us recognize this type of fish.  After all, they are widely abundant in the ocean. There are more than a hundred species of anchovies that can be found in the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific oceans. They are small and thin fish that only reach up to 10 in length and have large mouths. Aside from humans, they are also great food sources for a lot of marine animals. Anchovies, meanwhile, mostly feed on plankton. Because anchovies are desirable as food, they constantly have the threat of being overfished.

Mackerel

Mackerel is another type of fish species that is very common in the ocean. Mackerel is the general term for the fish that belongs to the Scombridae family. This fish family have a lot of different species and they are mostly found in the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. They live either offshore or along coastal areas. Mackerels have grey or black vertical stripes on their body. They usually group in large schools to fend off predators such as sharks, dolphins, seabirds, and whales. Mackerels are great sources of food for humans because of their high Omega-3 oil content.

Large head

Largehead hairtail, also known as beltfish, is another type of fish species that is abundant in the ocean. They are mostly found in temperate and tropical oceans around the world. Their bodies are long and slinky and have a silver-blue colour. They feed on other fish but they occasionally go after molluscs such as squid and octopus.

Herring

Another type of fish that is also commonly known by people is herring. Herring is one of the most bountiful fish species in the ocean. They are usually found in the Atlantic and Pacific oceans although they can spread around the globe by swimming in schools. They are an important source of food for predatory fish and sea birds. People also catch herrings for food consumption as well. They feed on plankton, fish eggs, and small crustaceans.

Sprat

Sprats are common types of fish found in the Atlantic and Pacific oceans and are a staple food for other fish species. They are also popular fish in pescetarian meals because of their high concentration of Omega-3 fatty acids. There are around six species of sprats and they have silver-grey colour that is similar to sardines.

Sardine

When we think of sardines, the first image that comes to mind is canned sardines. Canned sardines exist for a reason and that reason is that sardines are one of the most plentiful fish species in the ocean and because of that, commercialising them is easy. Sardines belong to the same family as sprat and anchovies. They vary in colour but most sardines have silver bodies with orange, blue, or purple stripes or dots. Sardines mostly feed on zooplankton. Because of their commercialized appeal, sardines are threatened to decline due to overfishing.

Bonito

Bonitos are medium size predatory fish that belong to the Scombridae family. They are usually found in the Atlantic and the Pacific Oceans and they usually live in open deep waters. They have a light to dark silver-blue colour. Bonito is a popular pescatarian food due to its firm meat texture with only moderate fat content. They are sometimes used as a cheap alternative to skipjack tuna. They feed on squid, mackerel and other types of small fishes and marine animals.

If you’re itching to fish soon in the ocean and you don’t own a fishing boat yet, don’t fret. They are numerous affordable fishing boats for sale around the country that you can buy from brick-and-mortar boat shops or online boat dealers. The market is teeming with quality-made boats that can last a long time. It’s important to remember that fish face a lot of threats due to overfishing practices, temperature changes due to climate change, and other ecological factors. When you go fishing, make sure to always respect their habitat.