More than 700 delegates from 47 member nations met in Marrakesh last week for the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) to discuss management strategies for several…
It was during the slow, hot days of a south Florida summer that The Billfish Foundation and Waterlust hatched a plan to boost each of their marine conservation efforts. The…
NOAA Fisheries recently released an updated estimate of recreational billfish landings in the Atlantic Ocean, as well as commercial and recreational landings of swordfish, thus far in 2017. From January…
Team members from The Billfish Foundation joined in the Gulf & Caribbean Fisheries Institute conference held in Merida, Mexico last week. It was the 70th anniversary of the conference, where…
We now know a little bit more about the massive marlin that was caught off Hawaii nearly a decade ago. On September 1, 2009, three anglers landed a blue marlin…
Humans have known for centuries that fish are attracted to floating objects. Fishermen have taken advantage of this behavior by fishing around palm fronds, seaweed patches, and any debris that…
Following the wrath of Hurricane Irma came the destruction: downed trees, debris thrown across roadways, docks uplifted from their posts, boats sunken or tossed on land, and in some cases…
The Atlantic bluefin tuna General category fishery for large-medium and giant bluefin tuna closes Thursday October 5, 2017 for roughly two months. This comes just four days after the October…
The International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (and other highly migratory species, HMS) convened mid-September in Madrid, Spain specifically to discuss management of tropical tunas followed by the…
TBF thanks its constituents for their continued support in keeping this issue at the forefront. Join the TBF community today to be part of our efforts on matters like
Bags of trash collected during Miami Seaquarium’s beach cleanup to commemorate their 62nd anniversary The Billfish Foundation strives to support its local south Florida community and partners with like-minded organizations…
In a small coastal town on the French Riviera, fishing is now part of history, romanticized by the thousands of international holiday seekers making new use of the beaches and…
Highly migratory species, including tunas and billfish, travel the world’s oceans and traverse national boundaries. Regional fishery management organizations (RFMOs) work at the international level to manage such species, bringing…
The Atlantic bluefin tuna General category fishery for large-medium and giant bluefin tuna (73 in. curved fork length or larger) closes September 17, 2017 for the remainder of the month.…
Members of The Billfish Foundation team spent a full Saturday at the Sailfish Brewing Co. in Fort Pierce, Florida for Labor Day weekend activities. The brewery hosted a Tag &…
Nova Southeastern University’s longline research in Florida’s east coast closed zone may damage its reputation for community relations and science. An associate professor from the university was granted an exempted…
An online reporting system will now be available for highly migratory species (HMS) fishing tournaments in the Atlantic Ocean, the National Marine Fisheries Service announced this week. HMS tournament operators…
One of the last billfishing competitions of the summer, the Virginia Beach Billfish Tournament concluded this past weekend in Virginia Beach, VA. The tournament hosted 75 teams this year for…
The 46th Annual Old Salt Loop Billfish Tournament concluded in Clearwater, Florida this past weekend, wrapping up the Florida West Coast Bluewater Series (FWCBS) as it was the third and…
Earlier this month U.S. Senators Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Bill Nelson (D-FL) introduced legislation designed to enhance and protect Florida’s fishery resources and those who rely on them. The Florida…
Click here to submit comments to FL Senators Rubio and Nelson. Click here to submit comments to your US & FL House representatives and FL State Senators. Click here to…
After the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) announced today its approval of the Exempted Fishing Permit that allows longline boats to fish in Florida’s east coast closed zone, Ellen Peel, President…
On Tuesday NOAA released preliminary numbers for Atlantic billfish landings in 2017. The estimates show individuals caught (and reported) thus far in 2017, from January 1st through June 30th, for blue…
We at TBF are proud to present Nick Mayer as our 2016 Artist of the Year. This year marks The Billfish Foundation’s 30th Anniversary, so we wanted a unique work…
The Billfish Foundation (TBF) is extremely excited to announce and welcome aboard the Marina Casa de Campo as a new Tag & Release Industry sponsor. Located in the beautiful Dominican Republic, and conveniently…
The Billfish Foundation (TBF) is extremely excited to announce and welcome aboard the International Game Fish Tournament Observers (IGFTO) as a new Tag & Release Community sponsor. IGFTO’s team of highly trained…
This year was truly a great year for the billfishing community and for TBF’s Tag & Release Program with more reports of tagged and released fish than in several years. Below…
When the US was in the midst of a recession (2007 – 2009), TBF saw a significant reduction in tag and release reports, and it comes as no surprise; the…
For more than 25 years, Garmin has pioneered new GPS navigation and wireless devices and applications that are designed for people who live an active lifestyle. Garmin serves five primary business units, including…
The Billfish Foundation (TBF) is extremely excited to announce and welcome aboard YETI Coolers as a new Tag & Release Program sponsor. A leader in the outdoor recreational industry, YETI…
Photo Courtesy of Big OH & Camila Sanches Tag & Release cards are really starting to come in and TBF’s annual Tag and Release Competition is heating up with less…
TBF’s “conservation and responsible use” philosophy applauds anglers big enough to release the big marlin girls that are estimated at boat side to weigh 750 pounds and up. To honor…
Learn about all the tag and release data The Billfish Foundation received in the calendar year of 2013. The report highlights all those anglers and captains who participated in the…
Sportfishing is quickly becoming a growing force, not just in the United States, but internationally. This past July, more than 13,000 representatives of the global sportfishing industry came together once…
PAXSON “PACKY” OFFIELD, former chairman of The Billfish Foundation’s (TBF) board of directors, passed away Sunday June 14th at his home in Michigan. In 2011, Offield was the recipient of…
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Ft. Lauderdale, FL, USA – June 8, 2015 – Today, The Billfish Foundation (TBF), the world’s leading sportfishing conservation organization, announced the winners of its prestigious Rybovich Lifetime…
The Billfish Foundation has received several inquiries regarding our annual tag and release competition. In response we have attached our specific rules for the competition. Additionally we have the individual…
Photo Courtesy of Chris Van Leeuwen The Offshore World Championship and The Billfish Foundation announced a partnership to advance billfish science last month. The project, including OWC, The Billfish Foundation,…
Over 100 guests attended the exclusive member’s only The Billfish Foundation (TBF) and International Seakeepers Society joint event to promote membership and announce a partnership between both organizations to collaborate on billfish conservation. The…
Each year, TBF relies on the sportfishing community across the world to report their billfish tag and release information. Since it began in 1990, TBF’s Tag & Release Program anglers,…
Each year, TBF relies on the sportfishing community across the world to report their billfish tag and release data. Since it began in 1990, TBF’s Tag & Release Program now…
The tag and release reports are in and the results have finally been tallied. This year was truly a record year for billfish anglers and for TBF’s Tag & Release…
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…
The Enchanted Forest’s Top Event Sponsors “Heroes for the 2014 Gala” Louisiana Cat • Bacardi Dragonfly Boatworks • Cox Maritime Law • Casa de Campo Marina Garmin • One Vanilla…
Because overfished Atlantic marlin receive no government research funding priority, large data gaps relating to their life history characteristics remain. Satellite tagging provides a means to fill some of the…
The Pacific Fishery Management Counsel is proposing to authorize the use of shallow-set longline gear to fish for swordfish off the West Coast of the United States. Below are the…
NOAA is considering an amendment to the current Fishery Management Plan for Coral and Coral Reef Resources in Gulf of Mexico. The amendment establishes new and modifies existing habitat areas…
NOAA Fisheries has released updated compliance guides for recreational fishing of highly migratory species in the Atlantic Ocean. These guides include detailed anatomical figures, identification charts, and species-specific bag limits,…
As of 11:30pm on October 13th, 2019, the general category Atlantic bluefin tuna fishery has closed. This closure will persist through November, which signifies the end of the current subquota…
NOAA fisheries announced third quarter landing updates for bluefin tuna, yellowfin tuna, bigeye tuna, skipjack tuna, northern albacore, and swordfish. These landings include all fish landed commercially and recreationally by…
In July, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) drafted a proposal to create a recreational limit for blackfin tuna in Florida and the surrounding federal waters. In it’s…
The Billfish Foundation is encouraged by the comments made by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) regarding the proposed actions of the National Marine Fisheries Service (NFMS). As…
As promised, below are TBF’s final comments for the NMFS initiative that will potentially decimate billfish populations and harm the recreational fishing community. As a reminder, the new NMFS proposal…
The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) is proposing initiatives that once again ignore the recreational fishing community and do not benefit billfish conservation. NMFS seeks to reinvigorate commercial catch by…
The Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission recently announced new requirements for fisheries targeting tuna in the Eastern Pacific Ocean (EPO). These new regulations intend to reduce sea turtle bycatch but have…
A new TBF-supported study out of the University of Miami made great strides in understanding the relationship between age and growth of Atlantic blue marlin. The study examined growth annuli…
NOAA Fisheries announced new 2019 baseline quotas for North Atlantic albacore tuna, North and South Atlantic swordfish, and Atlantic bluefin tuna (reserve category). These updates come as a result of…
Earlier last week, NOAA Fisheries announced that they are considering changes to the 2006 Consolidated HMS Fishery Management Plan and we will be monitoring and reviewing this further and providing…
As of August 20th, NOAA Fisheries finished compiling the second quarter updates for reported billfish (marlin, sailfish, and spearfish) and swordfish landings in the Atlantic. These landings include all billfish…
Just two days after the Harpoon category closure, NOAA Fisheries Highly Migratory Species Department has announced the closure of the General category for Atlantic bluefin tuna. As of 11:30pm on…
NOAA Fisheries Highly Migratory Species Department announced today the closure of the Harpoon category for Atlantic bluefin tuna due to the 91 metric ton quota being met. This closure comes…
Fifteen metric tons of Atlantic bluefin tuna quota was transferred from the Reserve Category to the Harpoon Category, bringing the total tonnage for the category to 91 metric tons and…
The first action plan from National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) is a proposed Amendment 13 for Atlantic Bluefin Tuna that included a tremendous array of options to modify how Atlantic…
TBF’s most recent satellite tagging expedition kicked off with a fantastic crowd all interested in learning more about blue marlin in the Gulf of Mexico and how to help with…
The Billfish Foundation is currently engaging in a research project with Atlantic Ocean Tropical Tuna Tagging Program (AOTTP) in order to further the knowledge around lifecycles of yellowfin, bigeye, and…
NMFS proposes to modify the one-month closed zone off New Jersey and the spring two-month gear restricted area in the Gulf of Mexico to become Monitoring Zones with an annual…
Amendment 13 to the Highly Migratory Species Fishery Management Plan proposes many options striving to maximize utilization of the U.S. bluefin quota. Half of the options propose changes to the…
The June 2019 assessment of white marlin’s relative abundance remaining in the water offered mixed results, “overfishing” had stopped, but the authorized catch limit is still being exceeded. So management…
TBF's Winthrop P. Rockefeller's Student Ocean Intern Program awards students who support billfish conservation and believe in responsible fisheries management.
TBF Responds to New Pacific Fishery Management Council Initiative