Skipjack tuna important prey species for sharks and large pelagic fishes and is often used as live bait when fishing for Marlin. It has no scales, except on the lateral line and the corselet (a band of large, thick scales forming a circle around the body behind the head). It commonly reaches fork lengths up to and a weight of . Its maximum fork length is and maximum weight is . Ageing skipjack tuna is difficult, and the estimates of its potential lifespan range between 8 and 12 years. Skipjack tuna is a batch spawner. Spawning occurs year-round in equatorial waters, but
Hilda M. Willing (skipjack) Hilda M. Willing (skipjack) Hilda M. Willing is a relatively small Chesapeake Bay skipjack, built in 1905 at Oriole, Maryland, and declared a National Historic Landmark in 1994. The "Willing" is particularly noteworthy as an example of a small skipjack with good sailing qualities. Her home port is Tilghman Island, Maryland. The "Hilda M. Willing" was built in 1905 at Oriole, Maryland on the Manokin River off Tangier Sound, in Somerset County, Maryland. Her home port was Crisfield, Maryland. In 1926 her owner was Samuel L. Laird of Oriole. Laird sold her to Thornton Webster of Wenona in 1927, who