boat engine surging

Surging at Part-Throttle is gonna be an AFR problem.
Could be in the carb, or could be an air-leak into the crankcase. But on a 2-cycle could also be in the ringseal, as in rings or cylinders.
Because the idle is affected intermitantly, I'm gonna go with a vacuum leak; or, as mentioned the fuel pump or it's signal line.
And don't forget the rest of the supply line. Primer-bulb connections are a known trouble-source.
It's a 4 cylinder 4 stroke engine

The fuel pump looks an awful lot like the Carter on my duster

I sprayed the base of the carb with carb cleaner while it was running and found no change in idle

I cleaned out the fuel inlet filter in the carb but it wasn't terrible


The annoying thing is, I can't replicate the issue on land