The History of Swordfish Fishing in the Atlantic and Gulf

The rebound of the broadbill swordfish fishery off the eastern Atlantic coast of the United States and the Gulf of Mexico over the last two decades has been nothing short of tremendous.

In 2001, with the addition of closed zones that removed pelagic long line fishing from certain regions, the swordfish populations began to rebound from overfishing, and juvenile swordfish mortality rates created by the long line industry improved.

Conservation Efforts Leading to Swordfish Population Rebound

On the northern Gulf coast, it was nearly unheard of for a recreational boat to catch a swordfish in the 1980’s and 90’s. Fast forward to the current state of the fishery, and most would agree that the broadbill swordfishing that we experience on both coasts is one of the most consistent year-round big game fisheries in the country. 

Many recreational anglers and professional captains now tag swordfish for various organizations such as The Billfish Foundation, NOAA, and university backed studies such as the University of South Alabama Dauphin Island Sea Lab tagging program, aiding in the study of growth rates and migration patterns of swordfish. To ensure that this fishery thrives for decades to come, it is important that more information is gathered on these difficult-to-research fish and that the conservation of the species remains a priority.

The Role of Tagging Programs in Swordfish Research

While very little is known about the migration patterns and spawning habits of the broadbill swordfish, many studies have been conducted from samples of caught swordfish both in the Atlantic and the Gulf of Mexico. These studies provide insight into age, growth rate, reproductive maturity, reproductive activity, and maximum observed age. A recent study by the University of Southern Mississippi sampled 93 swordfish from the northern Gulf, and the main conclusion drawn from the study indicates that swordfish in this region tend to achieve sexual maturity at a younger age, grow faster, and have shorter theoretical longevity than previous reports from other regions of the world. 

This would support the idea that the swordfish in the Gulf and the swordfish in the Atlantic are two separate biomasses of fish. Additionally, pumpkin-phased fish, which have a genetic trait causing an orange, pumpkin-like flesh, are only found in the Atlantic and the Caribbean and have not been observed with any regularity in the Gulf. If there are indeed two sperate populations of fish that have individual growth and maturity tendencies, it may be worth considering regionally-based management of the swordfish, rather than a one-size-fits-all approach. 

Although traditional spaghetti tags can produce valuable information on growth rates and migration patterns, much more information needs to be gathered before we can fully understand swordfish. Broadbill swordfish spend most of their lives at depths of 600 feet or deeper, and only occasionally rise to the surface, either to feed at night or to catch some rays from the sun during the day. This makes studying live swordfish quite challenging, and there are few videos and encounters that show swordfish in their natural environment at depth. 

While most tagging programs involve spaghetti tags alone, the Dauphin Island Sealab has taken their research a step further and have been collecting samples at Gulf Coast ports and tournaments to learn more about the swordfish in the Gulf in addition to their tagging efforts. According to Crystal Hightower, the senior research lab manager and research coordinator for the Dauphin Island Sealab, these samples have been useful in learning more about the size and age distribution of swordfish in the study area. “Lengths, otoliths, spines, gonads, and eye lenses are being collected for further study, and we use a combination of measuring the otoliths and sectioning the anal spines to provide an accurate age estimate,” says Hightower. Additionally, the Sealab is seeking funding for a few satellite tags for swordfish.  A successful satellite tag program could provide excellent insight into both the depths the fish inhabit, and migration patterns that traditional spaghetti tags are unable to provide.   

Insights from Swordfishing Experts

Captain Nick Stanczyk needs no introduction as one of the most recognizable names not only in the swordfishing community, but the entire sportfishing community as well. Nick’s dad and uncle first began daytime swordfishing back in 2003, and Nick followed closely behind landing his first daytime fish in 2006. He is in a special position to have observed and participated in the recreational fishery for nearly two decades now and has excellent insight into the current state of the broadbill swordfish. “Back when I first started fishing, we didn’t really think much about tagging the fish,” Stanczyk said.  “It was only after I felt I had proven myself, once I knew I could catch them that I really started to think about conservation and tagging. I didn’t want the swordfish to just become a meat fish for charters to target, they deserve more respect than that, and tagging the small ones became a way to make the release a special thing for the charter customer, while also aiding in research efforts.” Stanczyk has tagged fish for The Billfish Foundation, NOAA, and the Gray Fishtag Research program, and estimates he has tagged around 250 broadbills over the years.  With around 25 reported recaptures of these tagged fish, the 10 percent tag recovery rate illustrates exactly why the tagging effort needs to increase to produce enough data to make a difference.

Challenges and Future of Swordfish Conservation

The International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) has 52 members, including the United States, and oversees the yearly swordfish quota allocation for each member and is primarily focused on the commercial sector. While the US has not reached the allocated swordfish quota in recent years, there are certain issues such as lack of recreational catch reporting that prevent accurate effort statistics on the recreational side. For recreational anglers to target broadbill swordfish and other pelagics, a Federal Highly Migratory Species (HMS) permit is required. While those fishing under an HMS permit are required to report every swordfish harvested, often fish go unreported due to oversight or negligence. 

Stanczyk and I agree that some form of self-regulation on the recreational side would be helpful for the future of the fishery. Proactive management should be encouraged over reactive management.  Harvesting four swordfish on a recreational trip or six swords on a charter may be legal, but is it prudent?  A minimum size limit increase as well as a bag limit reduction would be helpful for the fishery in the long term and would not hamper or decrease recreational and charter fishing effort for swordfish. Captain Stanczyk believes that with the explosion of popularity for daytime swordfishing over the last decade, the fishery has experienced a slight decline in the areas he typically fishes in the Florida Keys. 

He theorizes that many of the resident fish, non-migratory fish that provided so much consistent action over the past years have been thinned out by the amount of fishing effort and numbers of smaller fish harvested.  I echoed that sentiment as well and have personally noticed the same phenomenon here in the Northern Gulf.  It seems that the fishing only gets good and consistent when there is a push of migratory fish coming through, and the average grade of fish is generally smaller than what was typical only a few years ago. 

Technological Advances and Their Impact on Swordfishing

 While the swordfish population has made a remarkable rebound over the last two decades, so too has technology made incredible advances in sonar and bottom mapping capabilities. Additionally, with the explosion of social media and the relative ease of learning virtually anything with the smartphone in your pocket, the technical aspect of catching swordfish is often readily accomplished by anglers with little to no experience with fishing for broadbills. These advances are a double-edged sword, as increased recreational participation in any fishery is something that should be celebrated.  But with access to the fishery becoming increasingly easier and fishing effort increasing, more fish will be caught.  

This issue isn’t limited to swordfish either, and many reef fish and other fish that reside around bottom structure have become increasingly easier to find with the bottom mapping software offered by numerous companies. The amount of effort and experience it takes to catch just about any type of fish has gone down tremendously.  Couple that with modern technology and fish have little place to hide. Care should be taken to educate those new to the fishery to be responsible and ethical anglers, and organizations such as The Billfish Foundation, encouraging catch and release and tag and release fishing are instrumental in teaching those new to the fishery about the broadbill. 

The Impact of Commercial Fishing on Swordfish Populations

Commercial fishing for swordfish is typically associated with long-lining vessels spending weeks at sea and harvesting swordfish by the tons. However, hook and line day-boat fishing has exploded in popularity along with the increase in recreational effort. While inherently much better for the environment and more sustainable than large scale long-line fishing, the ease of acquiring a general swordfish permit has turned many recreational anglers into part-time commercial swordfish operations.  A general swordfish permit can be purchased for around twenty dollars and is an open access permit.  This means that there is no limit on the number of permits issued, and for such a modest price tag, it is no wonder why so many would elect to sell their fish to cover their fuel or to make a few extra dollars. 

Added to this is the rampant illegal sale of day -boat-caught swordfish, which goes uncounted in either the commercial or recreational quota. While I highly encourage and participate in the day-boat commercial fishery, I feel that the permitting requirements should be more stringent.  Ask any Gulf Coast cobia fisherman what happens when every fish caught on a recreational boat has a price tag on its head. Most will probably agree that it is a contributing factor in overfishing, as what was once a booming sight-fishing fishery on the northern Gulf coast now seems to be only spoken of as “the good old days.”  For the long-term health of the fishery, commercial harvest of swordfish should only be available to those who fish for a living, not those just looking to offset fuel costs. 

For those who enjoy fishing for swordfish and want their children and grandchildren to enjoy the fishery for years to come, the time is now to continue to help this majestic fish thrive.  I am passionate about swordfish and have found that the vast majority of those who pursue swordfish are at least mildly obsessed with them if not completely hooked on everything broadbill.  If you target swordfish, please consider supporting a tag and release program.  If you have not experienced this fishery, be warned that catching broadbills can be addicting!  Enjoy the fishery, enjoy some swordfish steaks, and go purchase some tags for the future.