Comments on: Photos/Video: 1289lb Blue Marlin Caught

By: bill

bill — Wed, 06 Jun 2012 15:23:16 +0000

that’. an awsome fish congrats to the seafari . The fish came up dead , otherwise they would have let it go . these are responsible and professional fisherman and if it were possible to set the fish free I’m sure they would have as they have done many many times before . As for not fishing for during spawning season , well , that’s like planting corn in the winter. Why do you think fishermen fish anywhere for anything at any certain time. It’s becouse they are whereever they are at that time. Don’t want to fish for marlin when they are in Bermuda ?

By: SAD!!

SAD!! — Tue, 05 Jun 2012 16:56:33 +0000

I hope that everyone that thinks this is ok comes back as a marlin in their next life!!! Evil to think its ok to take something so beautiful out of the water, humans think they have the right to do what ever they like because we are the dominate species , even when they tag and release them a lot of times they are so tired they drowned. Errrrrr makes me sick!!

By: Get a clue

Get a clue — Tue, 05 Jun 2012 14:21:38 +0000

The fish died, its part of life, get over it. I understand overfishing ect ect, but at the end of the day life is sustained through death. All you vegans who claim not to kill nothing, last i checked plants were alive too. Just saying

By: Merry Widow

Merry Widow — Mon, 04 Jun 2012 14:53:47 +0000

I think you are damn presumptuous (for want of a better word) in insinuating that the “local guide” was paid enough!!! If you knew this guide that well, you would also know that he has been a driving force over his many years in the industry, trying to put game fishing on the map in Bermuda, AND that he never sought any remuneration for his efforts. Also, he and his son release the majority of the blue marlin that are caught on their boat. In fact, VERY FEW blue marlin are landed in Bermuda, as most are released with some being tagged.

In light of the fact that it seems you are for the protection fish, I hope you feel the same about the protection of children, and that you are looking at the tags on all your clothing, bags, and shoes, to make sure that some poor little child hasn’t had to put it together in a sweat shop!!

By: Barracuda

Barracuda — Sat, 02 Jun 2012 19:39:13 +0000

Is the Marlin going to be shipped to Japan?

By: Kathy

Kathy — Fri, 01 Jun 2012 21:17:24 +0000

The point is NOT that all fish should not be killed and all sport fishing should be stopped. The point is that the Bermuda Government should protect it’s own resources by preventing game fishing during peak periods of spawning. Anyone who does not understand this simple argument just simply doesn’t give a *@#& about our planet. It’s all about me, right here and right now!!

By: Kathy

Kathy — Fri, 01 Jun 2012 21:08:35 +0000

Yes, and I know the Bermudian “guide” personally. Like anywhere in the world if you pay someone enough, they too will succumb to the temptation of exploitation of resources. He was, after all, just doing his “job”.

Until we get the Bermuda Government to take a stand against people who want to come to our beautiful island and exploit our natural resources, we will continue to be taken advantage of in Bermuda.

These creatures are precious resources to our island. As a fisherman, the “guide” should have known that this was the height of the spawning season and even if it was caught and released, it probably would not have survived. To kill one in the height of spawning season for “game” and to watch the fun celebrations following is an indication of the ignorance and the short sightedness of the owners of this boat.

Enjoy your trophies!

By: proudbermudian

proudbermudian — Fri, 01 Jun 2012 18:59:48 +0000

I think this is terrible, why not tag and release this beautiful creature? How sad, poor thing.

By: Sid

Sid — Fri, 01 Jun 2012 18:54:13 +0000

Perhaps it should be noted the “guide” on board the American boat was…..Bermudian…..and without the help of the Bermudian probably wouldn’t of even found the fish, so get off your hign horse and have a look at your own back yard before you use the bash USA stick…..And no I’m not American.

By: Brent Slade

Brent Slade — Fri, 01 Jun 2012 14:40:41 +0000

Marlin sashimi is a popular food item in Japan and in Hawaii is offered as ‘Poke”. Yes, rare Blue Marlin is consumed frequently.

By: lalalalalong

lalalalalong — Fri, 01 Jun 2012 13:39:28 +0000

*obscenity

By: lalalalalong

lalalalalong — Fri, 01 Jun 2012 13:37:57 +0000

dat deya’s one biiig fish poppa

By: Barracuda

Barracuda — Fri, 01 Jun 2012 12:04:01 +0000

Do you eat a lot of rare Blue Marlin?

By: JPTexas

JPTexas — Fri, 01 Jun 2012 03:27:41 +0000

Ding! Winner!!! The ignorance in these posts is truly astonishing……. Hop onboard with the terrorist sea sheapards. Commercial fishing is the biggest threat to our oceans, NOT sportfishing. Please do so e research so you dont look entirely idiotic. I bet you guys don’t ask questions when eating a blackened grouper sandwich, maybe some spicy tuna rolls, nah…. Maybe blackened tuna also cooked rare to medium rare…. Or some grilled swordfish. You hypocrites are nothing short of amazing and your ignorance is second to none.

Get the flying gaff!

Fish on!

By: young fishermen

young fishermen — Fri, 01 Jun 2012 01:30:45 +0000

The artilce said it died befor they landed it wich makes it harder 2 land sometimes that happens with theese big fish

By: James Goodfellow

James Goodfellow — Fri, 01 Jun 2012 01:24:20 +0000

So which criteria are you using half truth? There are plenty that make Bermuda the biggest and I am talking about an insurance market rather than the country itself dumbo. Regardless my point is quite clear. As far as per capita incomes you will note that I sated one of the highest – certainly more than Mexico , umm sorry I meant USA.

By: Sportfisherman

Sportfisherman — Fri, 01 Jun 2012 00:02:49 +0000

All these comments although I imagine well meaning are largely ignorant. The amount of marlin killed by sport fishing is minuscule as the vast majority are released. Furthermore, the most recent studies show mortality at release is very low and These studies on these fish have been solely funded by fishermen. It is fishermen who are among the only stewards for these fish and if not for funding provided by fishermen there would be NO research or interest in their sustainability. Who is the ONLY voice against non discriminating long line, purse seine, and ground dragging methods that take up to 95 percent by catch? Sport fishermen. Have any of the people voicing their disgust on this topic actually reached into their pocket and donated to either the Billfish Foundation or the IGFA? Who does? Sport fishermen. The hypocrisy of these comments disgusts me as many of the comments come from people who love their sushi, eat fresh tuna and wahoo, etc………

Before making an ill informed comment it helps to actually know the facts.

By: K18

K18 — Thu, 31 May 2012 23:39:15 +0000

ditto

By: Merry Widow

Merry Widow — Thu, 31 May 2012 21:01:36 +0000

OH PLEASE!!! Will all the ‘saints’ get off their soapbox. I bet you all enjoy a good steak, leg of lamb, etc., etc. As for Greepeace, I hope you will all shed tears when one of the crew gets killed, in the name of preservation!

By: Kathy

Kathy — Thu, 31 May 2012 20:21:40 +0000

Typical Americans! If they have money, they’ll walk all over you! Americans are one of the top polluters in the world and have one of the worst reputations for environmental respect. Doesn’t surprise me….enjoyment out of killing a beautiful fish that has been on the planet longer than us….when the waters were once clean!

Please sign the new Facebook Poll to put pressure on the Bermuda government to protect this species and give them a chance to rebuild their stock. Bermuda can get it’s money elsewhere…from tourists who respect our oceans!!!

https://apps.facebook.com/opinionpolls/poll?pid=ACASUu6izrA

For more information on billfish read…

http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/sfa/hms/Billfish/billfish_description.pdf

By: observer

observer — Thu, 31 May 2012 19:12:20 +0000

It should also be noted that almost all of the marlin caught in Bermuda are released.

By: LMAWTFO

LMAWTFO — Thu, 31 May 2012 18:49:22 +0000

So you know, thats was a retorical question! LOL

By: half true

half true — Thu, 31 May 2012 17:48:24 +0000

Actually the largest insurance market in the world is the USA and that 1st place highest per capita income was way back in 2005 when the island was very populated with top executives making over $million salaries…it would be interesting to note how much this GDP per capita has change since the recent migration off the island from these “big fish”. At least you can eat the ocean fish, not much flavor in a bunch of empty buildings….

By: #ThatIsAll

#ThatIsAll — Thu, 31 May 2012 17:33:54 +0000

BWWWWAAAAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHHA *falls out of chair*

By: Lesley Cox

Lesley Cox — Thu, 31 May 2012 17:20:45 +0000

We should be ashamed to call this “sport”. Barbaric and senseless.

By: Oy Prick

Oy Prick — Thu, 31 May 2012 17:08:54 +0000

Oy prick! Stop being a poofta!

By: Railway

Railway — Thu, 31 May 2012 16:45:46 +0000

Sad, so very sad. This majestic fish should have met its end on its own terms, not at the hands of folks who caught it for sport ….. this is not a fish that was caught to feed the hungry … it was a fish that was slaughtered for amusement. Sad, so very sad.

By: wow

wow — Thu, 31 May 2012 16:41:57 +0000

I am reading the comments by individuals who are against fishing for sport. I am not a big fan but I will not make the moral judgement that is so easy to do in Bermuda. If you wear any leather goods, or use leather goods, if you eat meat of any kind, if you visit to a zoo, enjoy any creature out of its natural habitat you are might be a hypocrite.

I would support catch and release fishing or if that fish went to feed a big family then I would feel better.

So, if you have a leather belt, shoes, leather couch, or if you eat chicken, piece of pork, sandwich with turkey or beef, or suck that lobstertail or dine and eat sushi. Just know there is nothing such as humane killing. Or bred to eat. thousands of pounds or one pound. either you are against or for it. but get off your high horse!

By: Bacchus

Bacchus — Thu, 31 May 2012 16:35:38 +0000

Absolutley discusting. To think that this animal was killed for fun! Reminds me of the old big game sfaris in africa where so many of the big 5 were killed for trophies. All those people in the picture should be publically ridiculed!

By: tricks are for kids

tricks are for kids — Thu, 31 May 2012 16:19:23 +0000

Wow! I hope you all give this same reaction when your about to eat your Snapper, Red Hind or Turbit that is caught by your local fisherman……..

By: Z

Thu, 31 May 2012 15:43:39 +0000

I thought it was illegal to fish for Blue Marlin, and they were only catch & release since they are considered endangered. Please correct me if I am wrong.

By: (Faverne Lurbert) Come correct

(Faverne Lurbert) Come correct — Thu, 31 May 2012 15:41:57 +0000

So they jumped in and took this beast down with a hand spear? No? YAWN! Get in the water with me and impress me, bet you’ll think twice when the animal has a fighting chance of its own and you could potentially be the meal. Might as well have used a harpoon cannon and made up a cool story bro. I once swam face to face with a (roughly 80-120lb) rockfish, spear in hand, I love rockfish but I didn’t like the odds of having this 4 foot animal drag me into the depths of his kingdom, now there’s one more large and beautiful fish in our waters for out local and non-local divers to enjoy. Sport fishing? There’s no sport if there’s no risk of losing. The prize for that fish breaking your manufactured line is his life, he’s all in, and so you should be too. You wonder why marlins are taking matters into their own fins and spearing guys off boats. Smh

By: Mackie

Mackie — Thu, 31 May 2012 15:32:03 +0000

judging by most of the comments on here, 80% of our population must be vegan. just remember every time you eat fish, it was caught from the water….

By: (Faverne Lurbert) Come correct

(Faverne Lurbert) Come correct — Thu, 31 May 2012 15:23:25 +0000

Well you see, a herd of buffalo can only move as fast as the slowest buffalo, when the herd is hunted it is the slowest weakest buffalo that are killed off first. The natural selection is good for the herd as a whole, because the general speed and health of the whole group is improved by the regular killing of the weakest members.

So basically by allowing stupid people to breed, we end up in a situation much like today. Survival of the fittest HAS served well, past tense.

By: When a living creature dies, it is NOT a sport!

When a living creature dies, it is NOT a sport! — Thu, 31 May 2012 15:20:24 +0000

Thank you so much for explaining what I would have expected readers to understand when I used the term “pregnant.”

And for all those who think that decrying the killing of this creature is somehow a stand against tourism, THINK again. It is the hubris of human beings who believe we have the right to kill things just because we ‘can’ that is the point. Bring all the tourism possible to Bermuda, just leave the killing behind.

By: Biologist

Biologist — Thu, 31 May 2012 14:48:02 +0000

There seems to be a lot of misunderstanding about whether the fish was “pregnant”. A marlin will not get pregnant like a human will, but when they are ready to spawn, female fish will have a pregnant appearance because they are full of eggs. These eggs are released, males release sperm (i.e. spawning), and fertilization happens in the water column.

Blue marlin spawn within Bermuda’s 200 nm EEZ, so if this was an egg-bearing female ready to spawn this elevates the tragedy of the death.

By: Biologist

Biologist — Thu, 31 May 2012 14:40:16 +0000

I think this person means that the marlin was full of eggs ready to spawn. Females of fish such as groupers, marlin, tuna, look “pregnant” before spawning because they are full of eggs.

It is such a shame catching a big fish, the species depends on large breeders to make lots of larvae!

By: Concerned Citizen

Concerned Citizen — Thu, 31 May 2012 14:36:14 +0000

Misused wealth? The real wealth and priveledge that has accrued over the years, that many CAVE bloggers have inherited, came from exploiting the earth and it’s people. Sooooooo, before you bitch and moan, give some of your inheritance back, or donate it to a worthy cause. Can’t stand people who try to remove others freedom to enjoy their life. Please, crawl bak into your cave, damn idiots. Oh, and stop eating fish, and all other meat that gets slaughtered.

By: Concerned Citizen

Concerned Citizen — Thu, 31 May 2012 14:32:05 +0000

TD, agreed! Don’t waste your energy with these destroy tourism mindsets. People complain about everything, even when it’s obvious that this is a boost to our economy. And no, it’s not the PLP fault, OBA fault, or the governments fault. CAVE people in full effect. I hope this drives multiple boats and fisherman here over the next two months…..we can use the stimulus!

By: Seriously?!

Seriously?! — Thu, 31 May 2012 14:18:55 +0000

This is disgusting. These people should be ashamed.

By: Triangle Drifter

Triangle Drifter — Thu, 31 May 2012 14:04:44 +0000

All of these ignorant comments & not one mentions that by far & away the majority ARE tag & release.

Not one mentions the hundreds of thousands these boats, crews & owners spend while in Bermuda. This very lucrative tourism did not happen overnight.

Bragging rights?? Look who spends tens on thousands on cars throwing away perfectly good wheels just to put something shiney on.

BTW, I am not a fisherman.

By: Fish R Man

Fish R Man — Thu, 31 May 2012 13:46:10 +0000

Um fishing technology was not that good back then…you can’t compare because if it was then I guarantee you that they would have caught them.

By: Cha

Cha — Thu, 31 May 2012 13:40:29 +0000

Yes and the government charges them licensing fees to fish here and they pay into the local economy to have their boats stay here. Whether you like it or not this is Bermuda’s only surviving tourist product.

As I understand it the fish died at the boat so even if it was released it would be a floating carcass anyway.

By: Paul

Paul — Thu, 31 May 2012 13:38:14 +0000

What an appalling business. Killing just for bragging rights? Hope they’re all proud of themselves. As Oscar Wilde said, “The unspeakable in pursuit of the uneatable”.

By: Hahaha

Hahaha — Thu, 31 May 2012 13:28:07 +0000

A pregnant fish. Was it’s husband swimming around the dock crying too? Amazing. Best bernews comment ever. Saw that fish as they pulled it in, thing was awesome. Better if it was a non-radioactive tuna, then we could get some Sushi from it, but badass fish anyway.

By: Me

Me — Thu, 31 May 2012 13:26:50 +0000

You mean the people or the fish?!

By: Me

Me — Thu, 31 May 2012 13:25:43 +0000

See above – it was dead by the time it was landed. In fact, there is edidence to suggest that a large number of the fish that are tagged and released die shortly afterwards due to exhaustion. That, indeed, is a great shame.

By: Me

Me — Thu, 31 May 2012 13:21:30 +0000

The many in Bermuda who allowed you to catch it?! Surely by that you mean the fisheries department, who issue the lisences to foreign boats wishing to fish here. Yes, i’ll assume you want them to make a donation to fisheries. Not a bad idea, but the guy still paid for his lisence which means he can do whatever he wants with his money. I wonder, if he hadn’t mentioned making a donation at all what would you complain about in that case?

By: Me

Me — Thu, 31 May 2012 13:18:25 +0000

Indeed, the ‘eyewitnesses’ are looking to have rather dubious credibility at this stage……….

By: laura cutler

laura cutler — Thu, 31 May 2012 13:17:54 +0000

outrageous. tragic. i cannot comprehend on ANY level how this could be seen or felt in ANY way as victorious for the ‘fisherman’ – it is brutal, torturous, grossly unfair interms of ‘man v fish’. it is cruel and pathetic. this is what people call ‘sport’? barbaric.