Author Archive for: faith_benner@billfish.org
Entries by
TBF’s Top Taggers of the Decade
The Billfish Foundation’s Tag & Release Program is the cornerstone of our conservation and advocacy. We are proud to maintain the largest private tag and release database in the world, with over 260,000 records. Billfish tagging, and the recaptures that occur as a result, provides valuable scientific data to help us understand more about billfish […]
Shark Populations Proving Detrimental to Sailfish Survival
Charter and private recreational fishing captains primarily are conscientious in practicing conservation-smart measures for their business depends on the availability of fish. Most billfishing captains practice catch and release, some also tag and many use non-offset circle hooks. But best practices make no differenc e when sharks attack and kill thousands of hooked fish, including […]
The Billfish Foundation’s 2020 Virtual Gala
Despite COVID-19 and resulting challenges for The Billfish Foundation (TBF), board members and staff invite you to join and support our 2020 VIRTUAL Gala, guaranteed to be casual as you view, bid and donate from the comfort of your home! Think of the money you will have saved by not attending in person, which you […]
Atlantic Billfish, Swordfish, and Tunas Landings Update
NOAA Fisheries announced landings updates for Atlantic swordfish, billfish, and tunas, which includes recreational billfish and bluefin tuna landings from January 1st through June 30, 2020. But swordfish and non-bluefin tuna landings are for the period of January 1 through July 31, 2020. In general, reported landings are down compared to the same time in […]
TBF Swordfish Data Represented at ICCAT Meeting
Through its 30-year old tagging program, supported by 190,000 voluntary angler-reported tag reports from around the world, The Billfish Foundation (TBF) assists scientists in gaining a better understanding of billfish’s life history characteristics, including growth, reproduction, yearly movement and survival. Rare is it to receive tagging data from the Mediterranean Sea, but recent tagging by […]
Northeast Canyons & Seamounts Opened to Commercial Fishing
A recent Presidential Proclamation opened waters, closed in 2016, to commercial fishing inside the 5,000 square miles of the designated Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument, located 130 miles off Cape Cod. The designation was made primarily to protect fragile and largely pristine, deep marine ecosystems and rich biodiversity, including deep sea corals, endangered […]
Tag & Release Competition Update
Listed below are the top 5 captains and anglers in each category for The Billfish Foundation’s Tag & Release Competition as of August 3, 2020. If a category is missing, it’s because there haven’t been enough fish to qualify. The competition runs through October 31, 2020 and all entries must be in by November 15. […]
TBF’s 2020 Conservation So Far
This year has brought immense changes around the world, but The Billfish Foundation’s dedication to conserving billfish and enhancing recreational fishing opportunities remains steadfast. A few actions TBF has advanced this year follow. Advanced discussion with the Secretary of Commerce’s staff on conservation and economic negatives that will follow if Closed Zones in the Gulf […]
2020 Billfish Recaptures Update
The most important data received through TBF’s Tag & Release Program is recapture data. A recapture occurs when a tagged billfish is caught by a second angler subsequent to the tagging and release of a fish. Recapture data contributes toward gaining a better understanding of the species age and growth rates by comparing the reported […]
