Jack Crevalle and Horse Eye Jacks
Jacks are wonderful game fish, and are very abundant in the JDR. It is common to see a school of big jacks patrolling the flats, eating everything in sight. Many of these fish are in the fifteen to twenty pound class with some right up to the thirty pound mark. They look somewhat like the permit, being in the same family, but Jacks are one of the most aggressive feeders on the flats and very easy to catch in relation to permit. As a bonus, the Horse Eye jacks make wonderful sashimi back on the boat before dinner. Cudas and Sharks Big Cudas are plentiful around all the bonefish flats. Most will be three to four feet long, and will give any fly angler a terrific fight. Their aggressive take is exciting and few fish can swim faster or jump farther than a big barracuda. They are easy to catch on the many good needlefish patterns, using a wire leader.

Snook
A snook has the power to punch to the nearest piling with a wide, swooping tail, plus a double set of razor-sharp gill rakers. An angler has to fight tooth and nail to keep one of these fighters from cutting itself free, one way or the other. So we power up with heavy monofilament leaders, high-speed reels, braided lines and rods so thick you could remove the tips and play pool with them. And they still hand us our lunch.

In the winter, snook flood the backwaters and offshore reefs, seeking creature comforts while continuing their terror tactics on just about any fish or crustacean that will fit within their maw. When a severe cold front pushes the freezing mark, they become lethargic zombies--yellow-and-white submarines listing on their sides. On the warmer days, snook move from the deep water to the nearby flats. Many times, it's the tiny bay anchovy that suffers their ravenous wrath a hundredfold. As spring approaches, their thoughts turn to food, then love, like an awakening bear fresh from winter slumber. They stake out the channels and cuts through the flats, popping pinfish and sand perch. The fish feed voraciously, building up their fat supplies for the summer, when they'll mass in huge schools at inlets, passes and along the beach for a warm-water "Love Connection."

Barracuda
Barracuda can be found almost in all warm seas. It prefers water temperature about 75 degrees of Fahrenheit but can be also found in colder waters. Its length usually does not exceed 2 meters and its weight is about 40 kg. The Barracuda is at almost anywhere in Cuba and the tropical islands from shorelines and bays out to blue water. Although most fish in the shallows are small, it still is possible to connect with a 15- or 20-pounder perhaps even a larger one on the flats, or from shore.

For inshore fishing on the flats and along shorelines, spinning and bait casting tackle are ideal, and fly tackle will also take plenty of Cuda. The best artificial bait for Barracuda is a tube lure, made from a foot or 18 inches of plastic tubing with wire through the middle and a hook on the end. Fly casters can make or buy similar lures of braided textile materials. Over reefs and wrecks, casting tackle is still a good choice, with light saltwater gear also capable of providing good sport. Live fish make the very best natural baits. The Barracuda also attacks rigged natural baits, but in Cuba is not allowed to fish them tempted with live baits. Most of the time, you will use same rod and reel as for big Tarpons, since this is a very combative specie and will give you fantastic fights.

Mutton Snappers
Mutton Snappers are everywhere in the JDR, and plenty are found and caught on the flats- a real rarity. This is perhaps the best (and only) place in the world where you can now expect to catch mutton snappers on the flats. They are high powered fish that will pull with dogged determination when the safety of the mangrove roots is within sight. Mutton snappers are extremely wary when out on the flats, but if you can get the cast in there without spooking them, they are suckers for taking a fly. Most muttons caught on a fly run between three and eight pounds, but fish right up to fifteen pounds are a distinct possibility.

Other Fish
Anglers that want to try trolling off the reef with plugs, bait, and even flies encounter many other species of fish. Various snappers including the huge Cubera Snapper are present as well as groupers, jacks, kingfish, albacore, wahoo, and bonito and big cudas. One group of visiting anglers caught twenty five different species of fish off the reef-in one day!