TBF was very pleased when the National Marine Fisheries Service staff announced the 2018 amended Billfish Conservation Act (BCA) must comply with the agency’s official Guidelines. The amended BCA prohibits Pacific billfish landed by U.S. vessels from Hawaii and U.S. island areas from being sent into the continental U.S. Compliance to the government guidelines prohibiting […]
Good News Bluefin Tuna Anglers! The Angling Allocation of Atlantic bluefin tuna, beginning January 2019, increases by .3 of a metric ton or 661 pounds. This increase applies in each of the three designated angling areas – Gulf of Mexico, the Southern Area (outside Gulf of Mexico) south of 39 degrees 18 N latitude and […]
California Governor Signs Historic Law Governor Jerry Brown of California signed into law an act passed by his legislator to begin the phase out use of mile long commercial drift gillnets in open ocean off the state’s shores. This is a major step forward to reducing bycatch mortality of sea turtles, marine mammals and other […]
Using YouTube to Hone Your Fishing Skill Sportfishing is an art/skill that cannot be mastered quickly. It takes time, energy, failure, and money to become an accomplished angler. The interesting aspect of fishing is the pressure that goes along with it. Many fishermen are not “professional” and have regular day jobs. Thus, they may only […]
What is the appropriate minimum length for blue marlin in tournaments to reap the highest benefit for all? The Billfish Foundation’s newest Winthrop P. Rockefeller Ocean Program intern, Nick Becker, a recent graduate from Duke University’s Nicholas School of the Environment, worked with blue marlin tournaments out of the Gulf of Mexico for his […]
Major victory for fish and the recreational community The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) is not issuing an Exempted Fishing Permit (EFP) that would open the east coast Florida closed zone to pelagic longline vessels for the stated purpose of conducting “research.” Thanks in large part to TBF’s efforts and to our constituency submitting comments […]
Update for the 2nd quarter of 2018 The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration just released their preliminary 2018 (January 1, 2018 through June 30, 2018) landings in numbers of fish for Atlantic blue and white marlin, roundscale spearfish, and western Atlantic sailfish. While many tournaments had not happened yet, we still believe that the recreational […]
Truly a living legend in big game fishing and one who will live on forever as a legend in our memories. Capt. Ron Hamlin died on August 12, 2018. Hamlin was recognized not only for his expertise at placing anglers from all over the world on billfish, but also for his contributions to billfish conservation. […]
Keeping Pacific Billfish Out of U.S. Continental Markets The amended Billfish Conservation Act (BCA) passed Congress and was signed into law this month, August 2018. The amended BCA prohibits Pacific billfish landed in Hawaii and in the U.S. Pacific Insular Areas (Guam, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands) from being imported into the […]
