Swordfish Reporting Phone Number - Report your catch!

[Mike]

1-800-894-5528

Q: What are the recreational reporting requiremnts for billfish and swordfish?

A: Anglers must report all non-tournament landings of Atlantic blue marlin, Atlantic white marlin, Atlantic sailfish and North Atlantic swordfish, including those landed on a charter/headboat, to NOAA Fisheries by calling 1-800-894-5528 within 24 hours of the landing. The toll-free call will take less than 5 minutes for each response and an additional 5 minute confirmation call from NOAA Fisheries will verify the reported data and issue a confirmation number for enforcement purposes. This requirements applies only to non-tournament recreational landings to avoid duplicative reporting with the Recreational Billfish Survey. North Carolina and Maryland are also exempted from non-tournament billfish/swordfish landings reporting since these states have modified their large pelagic/bluefin tuna catch card reporting programs to cover these species.

Get your permit at http://www.nmfspermits.com

[FinalPoint]

As a member Ambitious stated...After the message starts hit 21 and it will take you past all the message crap and right to where you leave the permit #, size of fish, date caught, name and call back number.

[Break Away]

Please report you catch!!! It is the only way we can stake our claim to our fish. Use them or loose them. DON'T FORGET LAST YEARS ATTEMPT FROM THE LONGLINERS TO GET BACK IN HERE.

[robalo]

Wouldn`t it be a little unwise to allow commercial landings in a nursery where all the big females come to spawn? Shouldn`t the average size of the fish be considered before declaring the population has been restored?Isn`t there enough productive area in the summertime in the North Atlantic? Better yet, why not demand longlines be eliminated all together because of their collateral damage to other species?

[NSBsailsandtails]

If you release a billfish untagged are you still suppose to report it? If you are suppose to i am more than happy to report my releases for now on.
Thanks Danny

[robalo]

All you need to call for is to report any fish you keep. That is a landing. Fishermen always lie about releases anyway.

[NSBsailsandtails]

those damn fishermen always lieing, can't beleive a word they say.

[Reef-i]

Note:

If you are a member of the SESC and report on the SESC "Club" site you do not need to call your fish in. A couple of times throughout the year the catch data is accumulated and sent in as one lump sum.

This is the only way to NOT report all landed fish immediately.

[Freejumper]

I called and left a message then they returned my call the next day and proved me wrong about the formula i was using to calculate the weight!!!
I was using Length x Girth x Girth / 800. That would put my fish at 87 x 47 x 47 / 800=240lbs. The guy at the national marine fishery says in their calculation it comes out to 313lb!!!!!!!!!!! I will take his weight calculation better. I busted in the 300lb club!!!

[Tunachaser]

Originally Posted by Freejumper

I called and left a message then they returned my call the next day and proved me wrong about the formula i was using to calculate the weight!!!
I was using Length x Girth x Girth / 800. That would put my fish at 87 x 47 x 47 / 800=240lbs. The guy at the national marine fishery says in their calculation it comes out to 313lb!!!!!!!!!!! I will take his weight calculation better. I busted in the 300lb club!!!

Did he give you his formula?

[Freejumper]

Unfortunatley No, I did ask for it and he told me its on an excel spreadsheet and its confidential. That sucks!

[Tunachaser]

Originally Posted by Freejumper

Unfortunatley No, I did ask for it and he told me its on an excel spreadsheet and its confidential. That sucks!

Oh well. I read a post from Capt Mitch where he said that the LengthXGirthXGirth/800 formula is typically off by 5-10% on Swordfish. Congrats again on your fish! :thumleft:

[2ndChance]

I think we should start posting our confirmation numbers with the report. This way the forum and "eagle eyes" know we are reporting the catches. I have seen boats at the dock with three fishes but never saw a report.
WE NEED TO BE PROACTIVE BEFORE IT TOO LATE.
****WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS?

[Rod Chucker]

im just a beginner at this palegic species, one in the boat so far, out of 3 trips and 5 bites. can someone explain to me why reporting sword catches keeps commercial interests out? it would seem to me that if lots of recreational catches are being reported, that commercial interests could use that as ammo to argue to let them back in! if very few rec. catches are being reported, how could that help comm. interests?
RC

[Randy]

Good question Rodchucker , I,ve been wondering that myself .

[Ron.38 Special]

Rod Chucker,

Reporting does not support letting commercial interest back into the closed zone. The closed zone was put into place in lieu of a lawsuit against NMFS for failing to control bycatch on PLL's.

Your fish reporting counts against the US swordfish quota at ICCAT.

US has not reached their quota in over 12 years and probably will never again reach our current quota. We will however end up some day with a lower quota and if that quota reflects reach current catches then presumably, the quota may be reached. Once its reached, no one keeps any fish until the next quota period starts.

someday we may be forced to lobby for a separate recreational quota. If we do that, we need to show a "historic access" to the fishery. Simply put we need to show we have been catching these things to get our own quota in the future.

If we don't report, two things happen,

1. We don't exist....we never caught them so we have no right to future allocations.

2. US looses access to their historic quota. The more we report, the more we get allocated to us on an international level. If we dont; report, we will loose those fish in the future.

3. (I know I said two, but here's another point) US is required under international treaty to report, as accurately as possible, our catches, each year to ICCAT. How can we criticize emerging nations that are not ICCAT member, and don't report, if we don't enforce reporting in our own back yard.

These ain't bass boys!!!! This is international politics!!

[CaptainEd]

Ron all that you posted is true. I report all the fish landed on my permitted boat. I fish on other peoples permitted vessels and I don't think some of them report the landings. There is nothing I can do about that. It is the owner of the permitted boats responsibility to report the landings.

Anyway, even with your valid points to report swordfish landings you can bet your ass the commercial guys are just waiting for the recreationally reported swordfish numbers to climb. Then they will be using that as leverage and crying to NMFS, NOAA & ICCAT to let them back in because the fish are back and the fishery is fully recovered.

[Rod Chucker]

hmmm. interesting. thanx for the info guys. i have to research this some more. my initial reaction is that its way more important to keep the long lines from coming back in than to worry about international qoutas that have never been reached, and may never be.

longliners decimated the fishery here for so many years that recreational swording was nearly non-existant. no fish - no reason to fish for them. if they were allowed back in, we'd all be remembering the good old days, (NOW), soon enough.

Ron, can you tell me, or tell me where to find the data, for the actual quota for the US and how close we came reaching it recently?

RC

[CaptKen]

I just got off the phone with Greg on a confirmation # from last week, #787, This program started in 2003 with the first one as #1 and now in 2006 We are only up yo 787. You and I both know from the number of picts on here and the other one, Guys that are not puter wizzards, Or the ones that keep it to themselves and dont post at all, That this should be a higher number than it is.

I say We should be DAM PROUD to have someone like RON that goes to the meetings, Who does the research, and keeps up with whats going on !

PEOPLE PAY ATTENTION TO WHAT RON IS TELLING YOU !

REPORT YOUR FISH ! ITS NOT A BIG DEAL!

There are a few of Us out there like RON and Mitch and myself and Im sure many more, That watched these great fish disappear once, PLEASE do your part to at least try and NOT let it happen again !
Do what they ask, At least try to fight , Don't lay down and do nothing ! Imagine losing a fight and you didn't even try ?

A Special Thanks To RON for all your time and effort and GREAT information that you provide for Us , Keep up all the good work and keep those lines TIGHT !!
Ken

[Rod Chucker]

ditto ken. i'm just tryin to understand why reporting the catches keep the LLs out. it seems to me that the more rec. catches that are reported, the more ammo the LLs have to lobby they're way back in.

someone please explain this to me.

ive lived and fished S. fla. waters for 20 yrs. seen the gill nets and long lines come and go.

why do we report sword catches - really?

RC