A Call to Action
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TBF Supports Coastal Resilience in the Gulf of Mexico and Alaska
The Billfish Foundation recently endorsed the Conservation of America’s Shoreline Terrain and Aquatic Life (COASTAL) Act and the Opening Federal Financial Sharing to Heighten Opportunities for Renewable Energy (OFFSHORE) Act. Legislation proposed by U.S. Senators Lisa Murkowski (Alaska), Dan Sullivan (Alaska), Bill Cassidy (Louisiana), John Kennedy (Louisiana), Doug Jones (Alabama), and Roger Wicker (Mississippi). The legislation strives to increase revenue distribution from offshore energy production to habitat restoration and coastal resilience in the Gulf of Mexico and Alaska. The COASTAL Act would reform the Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act (GOMESA) to ensure a more equitable spread of offshore
2020 Virtual Gala Recap
The Billfish Foundation’s first ever Virtual Gala ended Friday, October 30th, after weeks of build-up and excitement! Beginning October 16th, TBF supporters joined in to support billfish conservation online with our raffle and costume contest. On October 23rd, the real fun began with the opening of our online auction! With items varying from fishing trips to electronics to jewelry and more, there was truly something for everyone. Participants bid all week long to score amazing deals on incredible prizes, all for the great cause of billfish conservation! The excitement came to a head on Friday, October 30th at 6
Atlantic Marlin Fishing Now All Catch & Release Though Year’s End Because 250 Landing Cap Exceeded
All Three Species (Atlantic Blue Marlin, White Marlin and Roundscale Spearfish) Must be Released by US Flagged Boats For The Remainder of 2020. Starting on September 30, 2020, through December 31, 2020, NOAA Fisheries is requiring catch-and-release fishing only for Atlantic blue marlin, white marlin, and roundscale spearfish in all areas of the Atlantic Ocean. […]
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 life history, habitat utilization, migrations, and more. It is also used in stock assessments and to bolster global advocacy efforts for the conservation of these fish. Without tag and release, much of what we know about billfish today would still be a mystery
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 sailfish, blue marlin, white marlin, bottom fish and coastal pelagics. Commercial fishing captains are experiencing much the same. Due to overfishing, two decades ago the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) and coastal states began restricting Atlantic shark harvest, prohibiting the landing of at least
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 can now spend on Silent Auction items or give a tax-deductible donation to help TBF during these unprecedented times. We hope you understand our dilemma and will help. Next year we will party hard at the Harbor Beach Marriott Resort, but first we must
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 2019, except for Northern Albacore, whose landings are skyrocketing compared to 2019. Swordfish landings are almost exactly the same as last year, with an uptick in commercial bycatch offset by decreases in commercial and recreational targeted landings. Billfish are currently on par to stay
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 captsins Rudy and Samuel Urbain provided such a surprise. In March, Drs. Folio Garibaldi and George Stirpes presented swordfish tagging data at a meeting of the Swordfish Species Group, within the International Commission on the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas) to help gain a better
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 whales and sea turtles, other marine mammals and numerous fish species. A proposed amendment prohibiting commercial bottom-tending gear from fishing inside the Monument would mitigate impacts on the fragile reefs. A much different situation exists with Closed Zones off the southeast coast and
