Kauai Fishermen Land Giant Bluefin Tuna Only Second Recorded in Hawaii

A giant Pacific bluefin tuna weighing about 309 pounds and measuring roughly 6 feet 6 inches was hauled aboard and brought to shore after a roughly 45-minute battle by Kaua‘i fishermen Billy Fine and Ryan McKnight, according to Kauai Now. The fish struck while the pair were trolling about 12 nautical miles from shore off Kapa‘a on Jan. 23, 2026, and was landed on Fine’s 18-foot boat Wet Willie.

Kauai Now reports that the fish hit a “daisy-chain lure at the end of their center line,” hooked a heavy-duty hook, then dove and “drain[ed] several hundred yards of line from the ‘screaming’ spool in seconds,” a detail attributed to Ryan McKnight’s account of the fight. After a sustained effort of about 45 minutes the two men wrestled the fish aboard and returned to shore, where it was identified as a giant Pacific bluefin tuna.

Kauai Now also reports, citing bestfishinginamerica.com, that the catch is only the second bluefin tuna recorded in Hawaiian waters. That claim has been attributed to the third-party website by Kauai Now; official fisheries agencies have not been cited in the materials provided with this account.

Local fishing context highlights how unusual the strike was. HuntFishKauai describes typical Kaua‘i deep sea trips as starting early and heading 3–4 miles offshore to target FAD buoys, which attract yellowfin tuna (ahi), mahi-mahi, wahoo (ono) and marlin. HuntFishKauai notes that large ahi commonly run in May through September in the 100–200+ pound range and that battles with big yellowfin can peel off hundreds of yards of line and last 30 minutes to over an hour. The bluefin’s appearance about 12 nautical miles out and its 309-pound size place it outside the usual local ahi profile described by HuntFishKauai.

For the Kaua‘i community, the catch is a notable event with several practical implications. A 309-pound tuna represents a substantial amount of protein that could matter to families, restaurants and local markets, but the sources do not specify whether the fish was kept, sold, donated or sampled for science. That lack of detail leaves open questions about food handling, public health procedures and any required reporting to state or federal fisheries authorities.

The record claim also raises fisheries-management and data questions. Authorities such as NOAA Fisheries and the Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources Division of Aquatic Resources can confirm historical records and advise on reporting, permitting and any required biological sampling. Verifying the “second on record” designation and documenting measurements on certified scales would help settle the catch’s place in local and regional records.

Photographs from the landing have been credited to Ryan McKnight. For Kaua‘i residents, the landing is a rare reminder of the ocean’s surprises and of how local fishing traditions, food access and regulatory oversight intersect; follow-up reporting and agency confirmation will determine whether this catch becomes a new chapter in Hawaiian fisheries history.