Extremism in Fisheries Must be Countered- Costa Rica

Just when you thought you heard every crazy idea, here comes another one! In Costa Rica, the nation to which 283,790 Americans traveled in 2008 to sportfish, which generated $599 million, or about 2% of the country’s GDP, and $78 million in tax revenue and 63,000 jobs, it appears some are pushing for extreme, anti-sportfishing suggestions. Environmentalists and others who claim to represent recreational fishing are suggesting strategies that will strangle Costa Rica’s sportfishing ecotourism industry, even though tourism is the nation’s top industry! The suggestions made on the record at a government meeting by the quasi-recreational fishing

Uncovering the Population Structure of Black Marlin

Understanding fish movements and reproduction is highly important for sustainable fisheries management, including for black marlin. Since 2013, Samuel Williams a research student from the University of Queensland has worked alongside Dr. Julian Pepperell, a TBF 2014 Rybovich Lifetime Conservation award recipient, and Australia’s game fishing community to help resolve the population structure of black marlin through genetic techniques. Williams credits the assistance of the game fishing community in helping with the research, which is said to be ground breaking. Rather than confirming what was thought to be a single breeding population throughout the Indo-Pacific, centered on the

COSTA/TBF RELEASE REPORT CHALLENGE

Anglers are the ones who can truly make a difference for the future of our billfish species. They’re the ones out there, every day, in all kinds of conditions and climates, catching and releasing fish, watching their patterns, noting their movements. Imagine how much data about highly migratory fish species we could study if we could gather every tournament anglers’ catch reports during the Quest for the Crest tournament series?” asked Amanda Perryman, marketing manager with Costa Sunglasses. The Billfish Foundation (TBF) and Costa wanted to find out the answer to that question together. So they created the

GULF & CARIBBEAN FISHERIES INSTITUTE HOLDS 67TH ANNUAL CONFERENCE

The Billfish Foundation (TBF) regularly seeks out and participates in conferences to learn and discuss regional fisheries issues with scientists, policy makers, and local communities. In early November, TBF attended the 67th Gulf & Caribbean Fisheries Institute Conference (GFCI) in Barbados. This annual event provides a perfect forum for scientists, students, government representatives, fishery managers, and conservation organizations from the region to present and discuss their research findings and concerns. Peter Chaibongsai and Roxane De Waegh represented TBF at the conference. De Waegh presented her work on the collection of fisheries data from all stakeholders for scientists and policy

SAFE HANDLING PRACTICES

Photo courtesy of Laurent Cherubin Did you know that removing a billfish from the water not only causes unnecessary harm to the fish, but in the Atlantic it is illegal to remove any highly migratory fish from the water that is  not harvested. Learn how to ensure safe, healthy billfish release and  still get great pictures of your catch without harming the fish. Keep Them in the Water and Keep Them Alive Can you remember the first billfish you caught? For those lucky enough to have caught a marlin, sailfish, or swordfish, the memory of the first billfish is

SAILFISHING TIPS FROM SAILSMEN FISHING TEAM

Winter is approaching and that means one thing for us down here in South Florida, the return of the world class sailfish bite. Anglers begin to anticipate the onset of the season’s first cold snaps and along with that, the annual migration of Atlantic Sailfish down the coast. Some anglers let us know how a finesse game can not only help keep you in the money, but be better for the fish as well. The beauty of this near shore fishery is that just about anyone can get in on the action; however some   anglers take this season a bit more

HOT OFF THE PRESS – 2014 INTERNATIONAL BILLFISH CONSERVATION RECORD

The Billfish Foundation’s 2014 International Billfish Conservation Record is now available for purchase on TBF’s Online Shopping Cart. This publication is dedicated to the late Dr. Russell Nelson, a nationally acclaimed scientist, who served as The Billfish Foundation’s (TBF) Chief Scientist for 12 years. The Conservation Record includes the 2013 Rybovich Lifetime Achievement Award recipients, the 2013 TBF Tag & Release Program participants, summary of all tag, release & recapture data submitted and collected for 2013, map of top locations by species, and much more! TBF thanks our Tagging Program sponsors, Bisbee’s Fish & Wildlife Conservation Fund

NOAA FISHERIES TO DEVELOP NATIONAL POLICY ON RECREATIONAL FISHING

Historically, the saltwater recreational fishing community and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) have not always had a great relationship. Over the years this has changed and NOAA has put more emphasis and effort to learn about and from the recreational fishing community. This effort has allowed the two groups to strengthen their current relationship. This week’s 2014 Saltwater Recreational Fishing Summit showcased this strengthening bond. The NOAA-hosted event brought together over 100 fishing industry leaders, scientists, fishery managers and interested observers to brainstorm new ideas for future management of saltwater recreational fishing.The Billfish Foundation was honored

66TH ANNUAL GULF & CARIBBEAN FISHERIES INSTITUTE

This past November, TBF staff members attended the 66th Annual Gulf and Caribbean Fisheries Institute (GCFI) conference hosted by the Harte Institute for Gulf of Mexico Studies of Texas A&M University. More than 400 scientists, marine managers, fishermen, students, and NGOs from 35 countries came to Corpus Christi, Texas to share their work and exchange information on the management of marine resources. Topics of interest to TBF included fisheries governance and recreational fisheries in the Caribbean which involved interesting research on artisanal fishing as well as the management of fish aggregations devices (FADs), issues which are of growing importance

TBF TALKS BILLFISH ADVOCACY IN CLASSROOM

In October, the students in South Broward High School’s Marine Policy class participated in their annual mock debates about billfish policy as they worked together to create a management plan for billfish in the United States. Groups of students represented different stakeholders in the fishery such as recreational fishermen, commercial fishermen, environmental groups, scientists, and government officials as they debated on how to implement increased conservation measures for billfish. TBF’s Andrew Cox attended the final day of debates where the students finalized their positions and came to a conclusion for a new management plan. Students were given insight