They are the legendary stars of big game fishing
famous for their agility, speed and power.

Billfish, particularly the sailfish, these
are like the cheetahs of the sea.

Billfishes are on almost any fishermen s
bucket list.

To me it s the anticipation of the bite.

You re sitting there, watching your teasers,
your baits, and when that fish comes in the

spread, that s when everything starts getting
real exciting, and you re waiting for the

bite and you get the bite, you get him hooked
up.

You start fighting the fish, chasing him down,
watching him jump.

I think that s what makes it all really
cool.

It s a real thrill.

Whenever you catch a fish that s a strong
fighter, there is an adrenaline rush.

They re such a beautiful animal, they re
very acrobatic when they fight, and it s

just a good feeling to catch one.

Give it a pet or a kiss on the cheek and turn
it loose and watch it swim away again.

One of the hotspots for billfishing is the
eastern tropical Pacific.

It s the area of the world where you have
the highest catch rates without a doubt.

Commercial fishermen also frequent the region
for its tuna and mahi-mahi.

Very large, industrial long-line fleets are
operating in the area where more than 300

million hooks are permanently soaking in the
water and we are concerned about the fact

that billfish are by-catch in these fisheries.

The fishing mortality that has been exerted
on the billfish is very high these days.

About twice as high as the resource can sustain.

What impact will this growing competition
for a finite resource have on billfish long term?

Can the commercial and sport fishing industries
coexist?