Marlin fishing
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Marlin fishing is considered by many game fishermen to be the pinnacle of offshore game fishing, due to the size and power of marlin, relative rareness and difficulty of capture. It is also expensive, requiring considerable money to pursue as a regular hobby.
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[edit] Blue marlin
- See also: Atlantic blue marlin
Blue marlin are possibly the most sought-after marlin species. Beautiful in form, capable of spectacular fighting ability and having the potential to reach great sizes, blue marlin have inspired and continue to inspire the dedicated pursuit of thousands of skippers, crews and anglers.
[edit] Distribution
Blue marlin are inhabitants of tropical oceanic waters worldwide, occurring both in the Atlantic and the Indo-Pacific. Spawning is carried out in tropical waters and many individuals probably remain in tropical waters year round; however, significant seasonal migrations are made into the temperate waters of the northern and southern hemispheres to take advantage of feeding opportunities as northern and southern waters warm in spring and summer. Although blue marlin have the ability to thermoregulate, the lower limit of their temperature tolerance is thought to be in the region of approximately 20 degrees Celsius (68 degrees Fahrenheit) (although individual fish have been caught in cooler temperatures); warm currents such as the Gulf Stream in the western Atlantic and the Agulhas Current in the western Indian Ocean serve as oceanic highways for blue marlin migration and have a major influence on their seasonal distribution. Larger individuals have the greatest temperature tolerance, and blue marlin encountered at the limits of their range tend to be large fish.
In the western Atlantic blue marlin can be seasonally found as far north as George's Bank and the continental shelf canyons off Cape Cod, influenced by the warm current of the Gulf Stream, and as far south as southern Brazil; in the eastern Atlantic their seasonal range extends northward to the Algarve coast of Portugal and southward to the southern coast of Angola. Vagrant individuals have been taken as far north as Biscay and according to some sources, western Ireland.
In the Pacific, blue marlin are seasonally found as far north as southern Japan and as far south as the Bay of Plenty in the North Island of New Zealand. Blue marlin in the eastern Pacific migrate as far north as Southern California and as far south as northern Peru. The southern limit of their distribution in the eastern Indian Ocean appears to be the waters of Albany and Perth in Western Australia, and in the western Indian Ocean blue marlin have been taken as far south as Cape Town.
Blue marlin have been found in the open ocean in thousands of fathoms of water, thousands of miles from land; however, they concentrate in their greatest numbers in areas where bottom structure (islands, seamounts, banks, and the edge of the continental shelf) create upwelling that brings deep nutrient-rich water close to the surface, sparking off plankton blooms that result in a food chain that ends in large marine predators such as dolphins, whales, large tuna and billfish. In temperate waters, the interaction of warm currents with these bottom structures is critical in setting up suitable environmental conditions for blue marlin and other warmwater gamefish. Temperature breaks created where bodies of warm and cool water are pushed up against each other also act as a less tangible form of structure which attracts bait and gamefish, including blue marlin.
Spawning locations are believed to include the islands of the Caribbean in the western Atlantic, the Gulf of Guinea in the eastern Atlantic, Hawaii, and Mauritius.
[edit] Genetic structure
Scientists distinguish between two species of blue marlin, the Atlantic blue marlin (Makaira nigricans) and the Pacific blue marlin (Makaira mazara). Genetic studies have shown that the p-phenotype is prevalent in both oceans, whereas the a-phenotype has not been recorded in the Indian or Pacific oceans; hence a large percentage of blue marlin found in the Atlantic are actually the same genetically as Pacific blue marlin.
[edit] Size
Blue marlin are sexually dimorphic: adult males seldom exceed 150 kg (300 lb) whereas females may reach far larger sizes well in excess of 450 kg (1,000 lb). The maximum size of blue (and black) marlin is often debated in both sport fishing and scientific circles. The largest sport fishing capture on record is a 1,805 lb fish caught by a party of anglers in Oahu, Hawaii aboard the charter boat Coreene C skippered by Capt. Cornelius Choy (this fish is often referred to as "Choy's Monster"). One notable feature of this catch was that a whole yellowfin tuna in the 100 to 150 lb class was found in its stomach. In the Atlantic the largest sport fishing capture on record appears to be the 1,402 lb fish caught by Paolo Amorim in 1992 at Vitoria, Brazil. This fish holds the International Game Fish Association all-tackle and 130 lb class record for Atlantic blue marlin. Commercial fishermen have boated far larger specimens: the largest blue marlin brought into Tsukiji market in Tokyo supposedly weighed a massive 1106 kg.
A 1,000 lb (450 kg) fish, a "grander", has historically been regarded by blue and black marlin as the benchmark for a truly outstanding catch. For most marlin anglers, a 1,000 lb fish represents the fish of a lifetime. Sadly, because of ever-increasing commercial fishing effort across the world's oceans, it seems unlikely that sport fishermen will ever break the legendary "tonner" (2,000 lb) mark.
[edit] Diet
Blue marlin are eclectic feeders preying on a wide range of prey species and sizes. Scientific examination of blue marlin stomach contents has yielded organisms as small as miniature filefish. Common food items include tuna-like fishes, particularly skipjack tuna and frigate mackerel (also known as frigate tuna); squid; mackerel; and scad.
Of more interest to sport fishermen is the upper range of blue marlin prey size. A 72-inch white marlin has been recorded as being found in the stomach of a 448 lb blue marlin caught at Walker's Cay in the Bahamas, and more recently, during the 2005 White Marlin Open a white marlin in the 70 lb class was found in the stomach of one of the money-winning blues. Shortbill spearfish of 30 to 40 lb have been recorded as feed items by Kona blue marlin fishermen. Yellowfin tuna of 100 lb or more have also been found in the stomachs of large blue marlin.
[edit] Fishing techniques
Blue marlin are fished for by thousands of crews from literally hundreds of ports worldwide. As may be expected, fishing styles and gear used in the pursuit of blue marlin is very diverse, depending on the size of blue marlin common to the area, the size of fish being targeted, local sea conditions, and often local tradition. However the main methods used for blue marlin can be broken down into fishing with artificial lures, rigged natural baits and live bait fishing.
[edit] Artificial lure fishing
Blue marlin are aggressive fish that respond well to the splash, bubble trail and action of a well presented artificial lure.
Probably the most popular technique used by blue marlin crews worldwide, artificial lure fishing has spread from its Hawaiian origins throughout the world. The earliest marlin lures were carved from wood, cast in drinks glasses or made from chrome bath towel pipes and skirted with rubber inner tubes or vinyl upholstery material cut into strips. Today, marlin lures are produced in a huge variety of shapes, sizes and colours, mass-produced by large manufacturers and individually crafted by small-scale custom makers.
A typical marlin lure is a small (7-8 inch), medium (10-12 inch) to large (14 inches or more) artificial with a shaped plastic or metal head to which a plastic skirt is attached. The design of the lure head, particularly its face, gives the lure its individual action when trolled through the water. Lure actions range from an active side-to-side swimming pattern to pushing water aggressively on the surface to, most commonly, tracking along in a straight line with a regular surface pop and bubble trail. Besides the shape, weight and size of the lure head, the length and thickness of skirting, the number and size of hooks and the length and size of the leader used in lure rigging all influence the action of the lure: how actively it will run and how it will respond to different sea conditions. Experienced anglers will fine tune their lures with often subtle variations to yield the desired action.
Lures are normally fished at speeds of between 7.5 to 9 knots; faster speeds in the 10 to 15 knot range are less frequently used, primarily by boats with slower cruising speeds travelling from spot to spot. These speeds allow quite substantial areas to be effectively worked in a day's fishing. A pattern of four or more lures is trolled at varying distances behind the boat. Lures may be fished either straight from the rod tip ("flat lines"), or from outriggers.
[edit] Natural bait fishing
Rigged natural baits have been used by sport fishermen seeking blue marlin since the 1930s and are still popular in many top destinations. Throughout the eastern seaboard of the United States and in the Bahamas and Caribbean, rigged Spanish mackerel and horse ballyhoo are widely used for Atlantic blue marlin.
Rigged natural baits are sometimes combined with an artificial lure or skirt to make "skirted baits" or "bait/lure combinations".
[edit] Angling destinations
- Atlantic
- Blue marlin have been caught by sportfishermen in the Atlantic from as early as the 1930s, when sport anglers from Florida began to explore the Bahamas. Authors such as Ernest Hemingway and S.Kip Farrington did much to attract the attention of big-game anglers to the Bahamian islands of Bimini and Cat Cay. After the Second World War, and especially from the 1960s onwards, anglers began pursuing and finding blue marlin in destinations all over the tropical and subtropical Atlantic. Cape Hatteras, North Carolina is often called the "Blue Marlin Capital of the World."[1]
- Bahamas
- Bermuda
- Brazil
- The city of Vitória is considered the world capital of Blue marlin fishing by many anglers but difficulty in travelling there limits access. Fishing is a popular activity in Vitória, and sport fishing has became more popular in Vitória each day, attracting fishermen from other states and countries due to the large population of Marlin and Sailfish off the coast of Espirito Santo. Largest of the many big blue marlin caught at Vitória is the International Game Fish Association (IGFA) all-tackle record for Atlantic blue marlin, held by Paulo Amorim, who caught a Blue Marlin that weighed 636 kg (1,402 lb). Larger Blue marlin have been caught in Hawaii (1656 lb and 1800 lb+), but these fish were not captured according to the guidelines of the IGFA.
- Cape Verde Islands
- This cluster of islands in the eastern tropical Atlantic has proved to be an outstanding blue marlin fishery since it was first seriously fished in the 1980s. Blue marlin may be caught year-round in Cape Verde waters but the best fishing seems to take place between March and September when large numbers of blue marlin concentrate in island waters. Blues encountered off Cape Verde range widely in size with many fish of 100 to 350 lbs and good numbers of larger fish in the 400 to 600+ lb class. The biggest catch on record was a 1241 lbs Super-Grander caught in September 2006 near the Island of Saint Vincent. Incidental catches include Wahoo and large Yellowfin tuna.
- Portugal
- Although blue marlin are being caught in increasing numbers on the Algarve coast of Portugal, the main centres of blue marlin fishing in Portugal are the oceanic islands of the Azores and Madeira.
- Azores
- Madeira
- Between late May and September every year some of the biggest blue marlin in the Atlantic appear off this tiny Portuguese island off the coast of Morocco.
- Big game fishing has taken place in Madeiran waters from as early as the early 1970s. A number of large blue marlin were caught during the 1980s, but the focus for most visiting anglers tended to be sharks and the prolific schools of bigeye tuna.
- During 1992 to 1996 Madeira was the scene of some incredible fishing for giant blue marlin, bringing the island to the attention of marlin fishermen worldwide. In 1994 alone eight fish of over 1,000 lb were weighed in.
- Between 1997 and 2000 blue marlin fishing in Madeira, along with the other Atlantic islands, underwent a severe downturn, blamed by many on the strong El Niño event of 1996/1997. However, from 2001 onwards conditions began to improve and the seasons of 2005 and 2006 have seen Madeira return to some of its former glory. June to July appear to be the premier months for blue marlin fishing. The small fleet of charter boats operate out of the small marina in the island's largest town, Funchal.
- The fishing grounds are situated on the south coast of the island, sheltered by the high cliffs from the prevailing northeast trade winds. Fishing generally takes place within a few miles of the island and many great fish are caught well within two miles of the shoreline. Lure fishing is the most successful method with a wide variety of medium to large artificials from various sources being successful.
- Spain
- Although a number of blue marlin have been brought into ports along the Atlantic coast of mainland Spain, the subtropical archipelago of the Canary Islands is by far the most prolific blue marlin grounds in Spain.
- Blue marlin appear seasonally in the Canary Islands between May and October with some individuals having been caught earlier and later in the year.
- Sport fishing boats may be chartered from the main islands of Lanzarote, Fuerteventura, and Tenerife; from the smaller islands of Graciosa and La Gomera; and from Puerto Rico on the island of Gran Canaria, which boasts the largest fleet of charterboats in the Canaries.
- The average size of blue marlin encountered in the Canaries tends to be large, in the 400 to 600+ lb class, including some very large fish upwards of 800 lb. Smaller fish in the 200 to 350 lb class also make an appearance at times. You can get fishing reports from www.teambocinegro.com
- Venezuela
- Virgin Islands
- St Thomas
[edit] Indo-Pacific
Blue marlin have probably been known to Japanese high seas fishermen for centuries. However, the Pacific blue marlin was not officially considered to be a separate species until 1954; prior to that date, Pacific blues were known as "silver marlin" or often confused with black marlin. The capture of a 1,002 lb Pacific blue by skipper George Parker of Kona, Hawaii, was instrumental in clearing up the identification of Pacific marlin species. Hawaii has continued to be the major centre of blue marlin fishing in the Pacific, and Hawaiian blue marlin techniques have been disseminated throughout the Pacific Basin by travelling anglers and crews, influencing blue marlin fisheries as distant as Japan and Australia.
- Australia
- Blue marlin range on both the east and west coasts of Australia, with fish being recorded as far south as the Tasmanian east coast and Albany on the west coast.
A blue marlin over 1000 lb has not yet been caught in Australian waters although the Australian record capture (which is also the ladies all-tackle world record) weighed 997 lb. Fish larger than a thousand pounds have been hooked but none so far landed. The fishing season in Australia for blue marlin is January to May-June.
- Notable regions to fish for blue marlin in Australia are the Cairns region, southern Queensland from Fraser Island to the Gold Coast, Port Stephens and Sydney, the New South Wales south coast region (where the Australian record was caught), Rottnest Island off Perth, Exmouth and Broome in the northwest of western Australia.
- Hawaii
- More blue marlin are caught on rod and reel in the Hawaiian Islands than anywhere in the world. Over 60 fish of over 1,000 lbs have been weighed in Hawaiian waters, including the two largest marlin caught on rod and reel: a 1,805 lb fish caught from Oahu by Capt. Cornelius Choy and a 1,649 lb fish caught off Kona by angler Gary Merriman aboard the Black Bart, skippered by Capt. Bart Miller, in March 1984.
- The town of Kona on the lee coast of the Big Island of Hawaii is internationally known for its blue marlin fishing, the skill and experience of its top skippers (many of which are also skilled lure makers) and its long-standing Hawaiian International Billfish Tournament (HIBT). A large fleet of sport fishing vessels operates out of Honohokau Harbour.
- Blue marlin skippers in the Hawaiian Islands employ both lure fishing and live-baiting techniques.
- New Zealand
- Although a blue marlin weighing over 1,000 lbs was caught in the Bay of Islands as early as 1968, striped marlin have traditionally been the main billfish species in the New Zealand fishery. However, Pacific blue marlin captures have increased in New Zealand over the last 10 years and blue marlin are now consistently caught from along the eastern coast of the North Island. The Waihau Bay and Cape Runaway area is particularly well known for blue marlin. Blue marlin encountered in New Zealand tend to be of large average size with most averaging 300 to 500 lbs. Larger specimens in the 600 lb plus class are hooked and landed every year.
- Most New Zealand blue marlin are taken by lure fishing with a wide variety of locally made and imported lures being popular.
- South Pacific Islands
- Blue marlin are caught in all the South Pacific islands.
- In 1930, the American angler Zane Grey boated the first blue marlin weighing over 1,000 lbs fishing a few miles south of Mataiea, Tahiti. Although damaged by a shark bite, this fish weighed in at 1,040 lbs, a remarkable capture on the primitive fishing tackle of that era.
- Offshore fishing in Tahiti began to develop in earnest in the 1960s following the establishment of the Haura (marlin) Club of Tahiti in 1962. Today seven gamefishing clubs exist in the Society Islands. As in Hawaii, the average size of blue marlin in Tahitian waters is in the 90-130 kg range, but many larger individuals in the 400 lb and larger class are boated each year.
- Vanuatu appears to be the premier destination for blue marlin in this area and one of the best fisheries for Pacific blues in the world.
[edit] Blue marlin in literature
The best-known appearance of a blue marlin in literature is as the noble adversary of the Cuban fisherman Santiago in the Ernest Hemingway short story, The Old Man and the Sea.
[edit] Black marlin
Black marlin (Makaira indica) are found in the Indian and Pacific oceans with some vagrant individuals having been reported from the south Atlantic.
[edit] Fishing techniques
Black marlin fishing is traditionally conducted with rigged dead baits, both skipping and swimming. The use of live bait is also popular, although sharks can be a problem with this method and tends to be used where sharks are not so prevalent. Lures will catch black marlin, but the prevalence of lure damaging bycatch such as wahoo, barracuda and Spanish mackerel in the areas that black marlin frequent often make using lures an expensive proposition. However, plenty of grander black marlin have been caught on lures, so the method should not be discounted.
[edit] Angling destinations
- Africa
- Australia
- Cairns, Australia is considered the world capital of black marlin fishing. It is the only confirmed breeding ground for Black marlin as they synchronise their breeding with the myctophid breeding aggregations and coral spawns of September, October and November off the Great Barrier Reef in the lizard island to cairns region.
- The region is unquestionably the best place in the world to catch a marlin over 1000 lb. Many domestic and international anglers visit the region during the September to November period in the hope of catching the "fish of a lifetime".
- Mexico
- Black marlin are consistently, although seldom frequently, caught in Cabo San Lucas and other Mexican fishing centres. Black marlin, along with blue marlin, are the targets of the biggest paying marlin tournament in the world, the Bisbee's Black and Blue, which is fished in the waters of Cabo San Lucas in October. At present, the offshore structures such as Corbetana Rock and "El Banco" off Puerto Vallarta appears to offer the best fishing for black marlin in Mexican waters.
- The large vessels of the San Diego Long Range fleet have also caught some hefty blacks in the 600 lb plus range while fishing for yellowfin tuna at the Revillagigedos Islands.
- Black marlin in Mexican waters, as in most other parts of their range, tend to associate with reefs, banks and similar offshore structures. Slow trolling live baits such as skipjack tuna over these structures tends to be the most effective way to target black marlin. Downriggers are sometimes used to fish baits deeper.
- Panama
- On June 11, 1949, pioneering Panamanian angler Louis Schmidt boated a black marlin that after being cut in half and weighed, tipped the scales at 1,006 lbs. This fish is believed to be the first black marlin of over 1,000 lbs caught on rod and reel.
- Today the productive reef areas in Pinas Bay, fished by boats from the famous Tropic Star Lodge, and the many other reefs and islands along the Pacific coast of Panama still have probably the best fishing for black marlin in the western hemisphere. Black marlin averaging 200 to 500 lbs hunt schools of rainbow runners, black skipjack and other prey over these structures along with large Pacific sailfish and dorado. Occasional specimens will reach well over 600 lbs. Slow trolling with bridle-rigged live skipjack is the predominant technique used to target black marlin by the Tropic Star fleet.
[edit] White marlin
White marlin (Tetrapturus albidus) occur only in the Atlantic Ocean. The smallest of the marlin species, they are renowned for their speed, leaping ability, their elegant beauty and the difficulty that anglers often encounter in baiting and hooking them. They are a premier light-tackle gamefish.
[edit] Distribution
White marlin are distributed throughout the tropical and seasonally in temperate oceanic waters of the Atlantic Ocean.
Where environmental conditions (temperature, water colour and clarity) are favourable, white marlin will often forage in shallow water well inshore of the continental shelf, taking advantage of the abundant baitfish resources often found in these areas.
[edit] Size
White marlin may reach a potential maximum size of around 220 lb (100 kg). The International Game Fish Association all-tackle record is held by a Brazilian fish of 181 lb. Most rod-caught white marlin are far smaller than this and any white marlin in the 100 lb (45 kg) class is considered an excellent catch.
[edit] Diet
White marlin feed on a variety of schooling baitfish including sardine, herring and other clupeoids; squid; mackerel; scad; saury; and smaller tuna-like fishes such as frigate and bullet tuna.
Like their close relatives the striped marlin, and sailfish, white marlin will often group together to corral schooling baitfish into a tight group for feeding purposes, a phenomenon commonly referred to as "balling bait".
[edit] Genetic structure
Recent genetic studies have suggested that white marlin are a phenotype of striped marlin.
A number of hybrids between white marlin and the Atlantic longbill spearfish have also been recorded. It appears that that the two species are sufficiently close to each other genetically that white marlin and spearfish spawning in the same area can produce hybrids.
The so-called "hatchet marlin" is thought to be a variation of the white marlin, or possibly a white marlin/spearfish hybrid. It is distinguished by a squared-off dorsal fin.
[edit] Angling destinations
- Brazil
- United States
- North Carolina
- Venezuela
[edit] Striped marlin
Striped marlin (Tetrapturus audax) occur in the Indian and Pacific oceans.
[edit] Fishing techniques
[edit] Live bait fishing
In Mexican hot spots such as Cabo San Lucas and in Southern California, anglers cast live baits such as mackerel and caballito (scad) to striped marlin that may be sighted feeding or finning on the surface.
Conventional live bait trolling at slow speeds is also highly effective when concentrations of marlin can be located. Experienced skippers fishing out of ports such as Bermagui on the south coast of New South Wales have in the recent past racked up scores of over 100 striped marlin per season fishing this relatively simple technique at the right time at the right place. Larger baits such as kahawai and skipjack tuna are often used for the large striped marlin of New Zealand.
Deep dropping live baits with the aid of sinkers can bring live baits deeper to feeding fish. This tactic is frequently used in Mexico and in Australia. It is considered somewhat lowbrow (it has been described as "snapper fishing for marlin") but is nonetheless highly effective when deep feeding activity occurs.
[edit] Angling destinations
- Australia
- Ecuador
- Kenya
- Mexico
- More striped marlin are probably caught recreationally at the Mexican tourist mecca of Cabo San Lucas than anywhere else in the world.
- Further north on the Pacific coast of the Baja penisula, great concentrations of striped marlin sometimes occur in the area of Magdalena Bay.
- New Zealand
[edit] Threats
The main threat to marlin, along with other highly migratory pelagic fish, is industrial commercial fishing. Billfish of all species are taken as commercial targets and as by-catch in tuna and swordfish fisheries.
[edit] Economic value of marlin fishing
Sportfishing for marlin generates millions of tourist dollars worldwide.
[edit] Conservation
Awareness of the need to conserve billfish stocks worldwide has led to an increasing trend for billfish anglers and skippers to release their catches in as healthy a condition as possible.
