TBF’S MASQUERADE BALL – GET YOUR TICKETS NOW!
Eat, drink, and bid on items to help support billfish conservation! Check out some of the pictures and fun everyone had from last year’s “Night Under the
CURRENT TAG & RELEASE STANDINGS – 9/25/14
Every year, The Billfish Foundation (TBF) recognizes the captains, mates and anglers (including youth and ladies) who tag and release the most billfish in each of the world’s oceans. The competition is categorized by billfish species, ocean, and whether the fish were tagged or released untagged. Award winners are recognized at TBF’s Annual Tag & Release Awards Ceremony held during the Miami International Boat Show presented by the TBF Tag and Release Sponsors: Bisbee’s Fish and Wildlife Conservation Fund, Casa Vieja Lodge, Costa Sunglasses, Pelagic, and SIMRAD. Please remember the deadline for TBF to receive your tag and release
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
NMFS Keeping Promises
The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) kept a promise made at the National Recreational Fishing Summit, February 2014, by its leader, Eileen Soebeck, Assistant Administrator in September 2014, when it released the first draft of the policy. The agency subsequently accepted public comments and in February 2015 at the Progressive Miami Boat Show released its […]
INPUT NEEDED FOR NATIONAL SALTWATER RECREATIONAL FISHERIES POLICY
NOAA Fisheries recently held a National Town Hall Meeting in Mid July as well as several webinars seeking input on the development of the National Saltwater Recreational Fisheries Policy. Put into action by Eileen Sobeck at the 2014 National Recreational Saltwater Fishing Summit, the policy aims to create a clear statement on operating guidelines in regards to managing recreational fisheries. While this will not be a silver bullet to fix many of the current fisheries management issues facing recreational fisheries, the policy will institutionalize the agency’s commitment to recreational fishing as well as provide guidance during the decision making
UPDATED STANDINGS FOR ANNUAL TAG AND RELEASE COMPETITION ANNOUNCED
Every year, The Billfish Foundation (TBF) recognizes the captains, mates and anglers (including youth and ladies) who tag and release the most billfish in each of the world’s oceans. The competition is categorized by billfish species, ocean, and whether the fish were tagged or released untagged. Award winners are recognized at TBF’s Annual Tag & Release Awards Ceremony held during the Miami International Boat Show presented by the TBF Tag and Release Sponsors, Bisbee’s Fish and Wildlife Conservation Fund, Casa Vieja Lodge, Costa Sunglasses, Pelagic, and SIMRAD. The standings below reflect Tag and Release Cards entered into the
SIMRAD JOINS TBF AS TAG AND RELEASE PROGRAM SPONSOR FOR 2014
TBF is proud to announce Simrad, world-leader in the design and manufacturer of marine electronics, has joined The Billfish Foundation as a 2014 Tag and Release Program sponsor. Simrad Yachting’s partnership will help TBF advance our cornerstone billfish tagging program to further billfish conservation worldwide. “As a global leader in the engineering and development of sport fishing technology, Simrad Yachting is committed to protecting our worldwide fisheries,” said Leif Ottosson, CEO of Navico. “We are proud to support the Billfish Foundation. The work and information they provide is vital to ensuring these important fish stocks are sustainable into the
FEDERAL FISHERIES AGENCY ADJUSTS MISLEADING ECONOMIC INFORMATION
Washington, D.C. – June 26, 2014 – After significant objection from the recreational fishing and boating community, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) has taken steps to correct a key fisheries economics report that misleadingly indicated that the domestic commercial fishing industry in the United States was significantly larger than the recreational fishing industry. When imported seafood, which is not regulated or managed by NMFS, is removed from the equation, the corrected data show that the recreational fishing industry is actually $7.9 billion dollars larger than the commercial fishing industry. Furthermore, the corrected data show that the domestic commercial
A RECAPTURE TO REMEMBER
Whether a novice or tournament pro, every angler out there should consider themselves very fortunate to have the opportunity to tag and release a billfish. Just seeing a marlin or sailfish is an amazing experience, but perhaps even more spectacular than seeing one from the topside of a boat is jumping in the water and witnessing the grace and beauty of a billfish close up. In June of 2013, Kasey Swan was lucky enough to not only tag and release a white marlin, but for this fish to later be recaptured. What made this recapture even more extraordinary is
TBF AT CASA VIEJA LODGE
If you ask any serious offshore angler where the best billfish action in the world is, chances are Casa Vieja Lodge (CVL) and Guatemala are one of the first answers you’ll hear. With captains releasing literally thousands of billfish in a single season, fishing in Guatemala is the experience of a lifetime for anglers. Fortunately for TBF, CVL has shown their commitment to billfish conservation by coming on as a Tag & Release sponsor and reporting all of their billfish data to us. However, their support goes far beyond that. Ron Kawaja of Pelagic and Tony Ludovico stand
