while in the Pacific a specimen of 820 kg was landed 

 on hook and line off Honolulu. 



Striped marlin are known only from the Pacific 

 and Indian Oceans, although there are records from 

 off Cape Town, South Africa, from the waters of the 

 Agulhas Current, which is geographically in the At- 

 lantic. In the Pacific Ocean the distribution of 

 striped marlin is horseshoeshaped, with a wide 

 latitudinal distribution in the open spaces of the 

 North and South Pacific Oceans. The contiguous 

 distribution connecting these arms occurs in the 

 tropical eastern Pacific, with the open end in the 

 western Pacific. Striped marlin usually do not come 

 as close to land masses as the sailfish or black marlin. 

 Migrations are pronounced, and populations occur 

 in the North and South Pacific Oceans. Like their 

 relative, the white marlin of the Atlantic, striped 

 marlin are spectacular jumpers. Striped marlin grow 

 to about 230 kg. 



Black marlin are reported with authenticity only 

 from the Pacific and Indian Oceans. However, 

 Wise and Le Guen (1969), in their analysis of the 

 Japanese longline records, noted that Japanese 

 fishermen report black marlin from the Mid- 

 Atlantic Ridge of the South Atlantic. In a more 

 detailed analysis, Ueyanagi, et al. (1970) show 

 black marlin to be scattered throughout the Atlantic 

 from lat. 30°N to lat. 20°S. In the Pacific and Indian 

 Oceans, they occur in the warmer parts of the 

 oceans near land masses, and are relatively non- 

 migratory. Because of their large size, they are av- 

 idly sought by anglers. The current world record 

 black is 709 kg. A color phase of the black marlin 

 from Tahiti has been long known as the "silver mar- 

 lin"" because of the silvery sheen on the sides. Blue 

 marlin from Pacific Panama frequently exhibit this 

 silvery pattern, which may reflect local food 

 habits or behavioral patterns. 



The broadbill swordfish represents the height of 

 frustration to the angler. Locally it may be abundant 

 but this species frequently refuses to accept an ap- 

 parently attractive bait. It is perhaps the most 

 widely distributed of the billfishes, yet the occur- 

 rence of the swordfish in sport fish catches is 

 extremely rare. Swordfishes occur throughout tem- 

 perate seas, where they are frequently the subject of 

 intensive commercial fisheries. The larvae are 

 common in tropical seas. Apparently the swordfish 

 undergoes tropical submergence, occurring at great- 

 er depths toward the equator and surfacing toward 

 higher latitudes. In temperate waters, anglers spot 

 and catch swordfish close to the surface, and in the 



tropics the longline catches disclose their presence 

 in deeper strata. Swordfish are usually found far 

 from land masses, though local disfiguration of bot- 

 tom topography, combined with upwelling, brings 

 food sources closer to them. Swordfish seldom 

 jump, yet they are huge fish, and their scarcity in 

 anglers' catch records and reluctance to take a bait 

 relegate them as a special prize. The present angler 

 record is about 537 kg, although somewhat larger 

 fish are reported to be occasionally captured com- 

 mercially. 



The longbill spearfish is the only one of the four 

 spearfish (sensn slrictii) to be taken regularly by 

 anglers. Although this species had been taken by 

 anglers in the western Atlantic for years, it was 

 recognized as distinct from other billfishes only rela- 

 tively recently by the late Al Pflueger who, together 

 with marine scientists, considered it to be similar to 

 the Mediterranean spearfish. Finally, through the 

 efforts of the late John K. Howard, Dr. C. Richard 

 Robins of the University of Miami was able to ex- 

 amine 27 spearfish from the Mediterranean. This 

 study led to the conclusion that the western Atlantic 

 form was a distinct and undescribed species, which 

 was subsequently named T. pfluegeri (Robins and 

 de Sylva, 1963). This predominantly offshore 

 species ranges from Georges Bank, Bermuda, the 

 northern Gulf of Mexico, and from Puerto Rico to 

 Brazil. Japanese longline records list spearfish from 

 the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and the Northeast Atlantic 

 to off South Africa (Ueyanagi et al., 1970), but it 

 cannot be stated with certainty as to what species 

 they refer, or even if there is more than one species. 

 In any event, the longbill spearfish is found 

 offshore, being taken only occasionally by anglers. 

 We have data on about 75 fish taken to date, the 

 largest being 40 kg. A summary of the biology and 

 distribution of this species is presented by Robins 

 (1974b). 



Important Geographic Regions for 

 Sport Fishing for Billfishes 



North America. — The northernmost billfish con- 

 centration in North America is the late summer con- 

 centration of swordfish at Cape Breton, Nova 

 Scotia, which supports one of the oldest of the bill- 

 fish sport fisheries (Fig. 1). Swordfish are rela- 

 tively common south to Montauk, Long Island, 

 New York, where they are taken commercially and 

 for sport. White marlin are not uncommon in late 

 summer from Cape Cod to Montauk. Occasional 

 sailfish and white marlin have been recorded. 



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