TAG & RELEASE COMPETITION UPDATE!

We may still be highlighting last year’s award winners, but the Tag & Release Competition update as it stands. Don’t forget, these positions will be shifting constantly until the final deadline, October 31, especially now that the kiddos are out of school and hitting it hard! Check out the link for full details and rules. www.billfish.org/competition/ As of 7/6/17 Overall Release Captain Overall Tagging Captain Overall Release Angler Overall Tagging Angler Overall Release Lady Angler Overall Tagging Lady Angler Overall Release Youth Angler Overall Tagging Youth Angler Top Tagging Angler- Atlantic Blue Marlin Sailfish Top Release Angler- Atlantic

THE BILLFISH FOUNDATION ANNOUNCES 2017 LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD WINNERS

Today, The Billfish Foundation (TBF), the world’s leading sportfishing conservation organization for marlin, sailfish, spearfish and associated highly migratory fish, announces this year’s winners of its prestigious Lifetime Achievement Awards and its Club of Excellence Awards.  The Lifetime Achievement Awards are named in honor of three distinguished gentlemen who made exemplary contributions to advancing billfish research and conservation throughout their lives. The Club Award is in recognition of big game fishing clubs that have contributed to the conservation and management of billfish and other species, responsible sportfishing fishing and support of TBF. THE WINTHROP P. ROCKEFELLER LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT

WHAT IS THE PORT STATE MEASURES AGREEMENT AND WHY DOES IT MATTER?

Seafood is big business. Not only is it an industry that exchanges billions of dollars in trade globally, but the sector also trades an abundance of resources that contribute to food security and livelihoods across the world. When there’s money to be made, though, naturally there will be some bad players. Illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing is a shadowy component of global fisheries with its roots in lack of enforcement. It can take the form of fishing in a protected zone, taking more than is allowed, taking protected species, or fishing by one nation in another’s exclusive waters

BLUEFIN TUNA HARVEST QUOTA CLOSES FOR THE YEAR IN GULF OF MEXICO

The National Marine Fisheries serviced announced that the recreational bluefin tuna harvest in the Gulf of Mexico has reached its quota and will close June 7, 2017 until the end of the year (December 31, 2017). This sub-quota for the region is a recent development that TBF helped push for — prior to a division of the southern bluefin quota, the full allocation was landed before ever reaching the Gulf of Mexico. Ellen Peel, Director of The Billfish Foundation, said the excitement of several teams who brought in a trophy-sized bluefin this year in Alabama was unmistakable. Many praised

GULF OF MEXICO QUOTA ADJUSTED AFTER BLUEFIN TUNA LANDING

The quota for bluefin tuna in the Gulf of Mexico has been updated after a large individual was landed in a fishing tournament last week. Katie Gonsoulin pulled in a 502.4-pound bluefin tuna while fishing on Done Deal at the Orange Beach Billfish Classic in Alabama. The remaining trophy fish quota for Gulf anglers is now approximately one metric ton, or about 1,150 pounds (whole weight). This subquota is part of the larger quota granted to the United States by the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tuna (ICCAT), a regional fisheries management body that conducts stock assessments and sets

ADVANCEMENT OF BILLFISH CONSERVATION ACT – A PARTIAL STEP FORWARD

On May 18, the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation advanced Section 396, an amendment to the 2012 Billfish Conservation Act. The bill, initially introduced in February by U.S. Senators Bill Nelson (D-Fla.), Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) and Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), was passed favorably without amendment during an executive session. Section 396 adds that billfish caught in Hawaii, American Samoa, Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands are not to be sold or transported to the U.S. mainland. The Billfish Foundation applauds continuing efforts made by the Senate to eliminate the sale of Pacific billfish to the

JAPAN SIGNS PORT STATE MEASURES AGREEMENT IN FIGHT AGAINST IUU FISHING

The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) announced Monday that Japan has joined 57 other States in signing on to the Port State Measures Agreement (PSMA). Entered into force in June of last year, the Agreement is an international effort aimed at eliminating illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing, which is responsible for billions in lost revenue each year. The oceans are vast and difficult to police, and the profit for seafood products can be significant, contributing to the appeal of IUU fishing. This often negates the effects of sustainable management and pilfers the opportunity for local communities

CLOSURE ATTEMPTS IN PRIME PANAMANIAN SPORTFISHING AREAS

The Fishery Commission in Panama is striving to close waters around Montuosa Island and the Hannibal Bank to recreational fishing even though those areas include some of the most productive sportfishing in Panama. Local sources informed TBF staff that the movement appears to be targeting the actions of the former President, who supported recreational fishing, especially the sportfishing eco-tourism trade. Both local members of the recreational fishing community and captains from other nations living and charter fishing in Panama are working to persuade the Commission to modify its plans. TBF’s socio-economic study in Panama documented that in 2011 (most

TBF ADDING TWO NEW LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS

Two new lifetime achievement awards have been added to TBF’s annual recognition of excellence in advancing billfish conservation. The first new award is the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Individual Lifetime Achievement Award in honor of the late Winthrop Rockefeller, the founder of TBF. This award will recognize individuals, who have made a positive impact on the knowledge and character of sportfishing, boating, educational opportunities and youth fishing. The second new award is the Paxson H. Offield Lifetime Billfish Science Award in honor of the late Paxson Offield, who was an exemplary supporter of billfish research. The award will recognize outstanding

CALL TO ACTION ON FORAGE FISH!

The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council has begun a Scoping Process to consider allowing giant trawlers to increase their excessive landings of forage species off the Mid-Atlantic region, specifically chub (Tinker) mackerel.   Knowing how important that species and the other forage fish are to support the recreational billfish and tuna fisheries NOW is the time to email your comments to the Council to Chris Moore. For your convenience, we have created a draft letter for your reference to write your own letter or to email here. Attached is our official comments as well for your review. If you can, please attend and voice