By Scott “Fraz” Murray
So many times, I’m asked about how much a captain should get paid. Sometimes, I’m asked by the captain and sometimes I’m asked by the owners. There seems to be no rhyme nor reason on what a captain should or shouldn’t make.
Back in the day, there was an unwritten rule that a captain should make a grand per foot. I don’t know who came up with that…but it was ignorant.
By ITB Staff
Chasing billfish with light tackle, circle hooks and dead bait is a tactic that has gained in popularity worldwide. It’s a great way to keep the anglers involved in catching fish rather than just waiting for a blind strike, not to mention that pitch-baiting a lit-up marlin or sailfish off the teaser is just about the coolest thing you can do.
Unfortunately, with new anglers there’s also a corresponding rise in burnt thumbs and bird’s nests—we’re talking about the dreaded backlash. Here are a few tips on what to do once you’ve had one and, even better, a few thoughts on how to keep them from happening in the first place. [Read more…]
By Peter B. Wright
The family of “true” billfish includes all the species called marlin, all the sailfish (which are split into the Atlantic and Pacific species with the Pacific sailfish also being found in the Indian Ocean) and several species of spearfish. Swordfish are commonly grouped with these billfish of the Istiophoridae family, but they are technically the sole member of the family Xiphiidae.
All of these fish are part of the teleost group, which are known as bony fishes and are closely related. With the sole exception of the swordfish, billfish vary only slightly in how the different species capture and kill their prey. I am about to explain why the common myth that all billfish use their bill as a sword, or a club, to kill their prey is not correct!
