Machete, Elops affinis

Machete, Elops affinis. Fish caught from shore at Km 21, Cabo Real, Baja California Sur, November 2008. Length: 48 cm (19 inches).

Machete, Elops affinis. Fish caught from coastal waters off Mazatlán, Sinaloa, October 2021. Length: 50 cm (20 inches). Catch, photograph and identification courtesy of Bart, The Netherlands  (worldangler.eu).

Machete, Elops affinis. Fish caught from coastal waters off San Pedro, California, November 2008. Length: 51 cm (20 inches). Catch, photograph and identification courtesy of Eli (obsessiveangling.wordpress.com).

Machete, Elops affinis. Fish caught from shore off Point Palmilla, Baja California Sur, November 2021. Length: 53 cm (21 inches). Catch and photograph courtesy of Mauricio Correa, Los Cabos, Baja California Sur.

Machete, Elops affinis. Underwater photograph taken in coastal waters of the greater Los Cabos area, Baja California Sur, May 2018. Photograph courtesy of Bob Hillis, Ivins, Utah.

The Machete, Elops affinis, is a member of the Tenpounder or Elopidae Family, that is also known as the Ladyfish and in Mexico as machete del Pacifico. Globally, there are six species in the genus Elops, of which three are found in Mexican waters, two in the Atlantic and one in the Pacific Ocean.

The Machete has an elongated cylindrical body with an oval cross section. They are dark blue-green dorsally transitioning to silver ventrally with blue reflections. Their caudal and dorsal fins are dark and their other fins have a light yellow tint. Their head has large eyes with fatty eyelids. They have an oblique mouth at the front that reaches past the eyes and has a projecting lower jaw. Their fins have no spines. Their anal fin has 12 to 18 rays, and is located well behind the dorsal fin, and has a shorter base than the dorsal fin base; their caudal fin is deeply forked; their dorsal fin is located mid-body and has 20 to 27 rays; their pectoral fins are low on the body and just behind the gill covers; and, their pelvic fins originate under the front half of the dorsal fin base. They have 16 to 20 gill rakers. They are covered with very noticeable scales and their lateral line is prominent and runs the length of the body.

The Machete is a shallow inshore pelagic species found over sandy bottoms at depths up to 10 m (33 feet). They reach a maximum of 91 cm (3 feet 0 inches) in length. As of January 1, 2024, the International Game Fish Association world record stood at 0.99 kg (2 lbs 3 oz) with the fish caught from coastal waters of the Sea of Cortez in June 2018. They are known to enter estuaries and freshwater. They aggregate in large schools and are twilight predators feeding on small fish (especially herring) and shrimp. The Machete is poorly studied with very limited information available about their lifestyle and behavioral patterns including specific details on age, growth, longevity, movement patterns, diet, habitat use, and reproduction.

The Machete is found in all Mexican waters of the Pacific Ocean.

The Machete is an easy species to identify but can be confused with the Eastern Pacific Bonefish, Albula esuncula (small mouth that does not extend to eyes; pelvic fins that originate at rear of dorsal fin), the Milkfish, Chanos chanos (large eyes; small mouth; strong lateral line; short pointed dorsal fin), and the Pacific Shafted Bonefish, Albula nemoptera (prolonged filamentous last dorsal fin ray; long last anal fin ray; dorsal ray longer than anal ray).

From a conservation perspective the Machete is currently considered to be Data Deficient. They are referred to as a “ten-pounder” due to their terrific strength and stamina, although they seldom exceed three pounds. When hooked they can provide recreational anglers with quite a tussle. They are a targeted game fish in some areas but are not of commercial interest. They are not edible due to the numerous small bones found throughout their body.