I witnesses this exact same thing several years ago. I actually heard them before I saw them.They were behind the boat around the shallows of the Alligator Point region. Looked back to see hundreds of them jumping a long ways. They were not slender like any Mackerel.More like a wider Pompano but I didn't think they would have been in shallow waters like that. My guess was Bonita but didn't think they would be that shallow either.
Who knows.
Last weekend I ran into fish jumping out of the water right at the mouth of the West Pearl. I saw the little glassminnows around and decided to cast a few times. Turns out that they were spanish mackerel about 16-18' long. Tasted good with a little lemon butter and tony's in the oven!!
Thanks for the posts. In hindsight, I think they may have been mackerel. They didn't seem as wide as the pic posted of the Bumper and they were definitely bigger than a pound. Looked to be between a foot to a foot and a half long. Very silver colored from the quick looks we would get when they jumped. Never had Spanish Mackerel break me off so easy, though (with 20lb. fluorocarbon leader). It was a heck of a show, though!
Jack crevalle???