DEDICATION

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

TABLE OF CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION

ZOOGEOGRAPHY

ECOLOGY

BIOLOGY AND BEHAVIOR

VALUE OF FISH RESOURCES

CONSERVATION AND MANAGEMENT

DANGEROUS MARINE FISHES

HOW TO USE THIS BOOK

BIBLIOGRAPHY

SPECIES INDEX

CHAMORRO NAMES

ISTIOPHORIDAE (MARLINS AND SAILFISHES)

Makaira nigricans Lacepède
(Blue Marlin)
FL: to 500 cm; wt: 817.7 kg. The Pacific IGFA all-tackle
          record for this species was caught off Ritidian Pt.,
          Guam, and weighed 523 kg (1153 lbs) (photo:
          157.2 cm FL)

This is the world’s largest species of billfish.  It occurs in offshore waters from the surface to depths of 200 m or more.  Blue Marlin feed primarily on tunas and other pelagic fishes and to a lesser extent on young reef fishes and squid.  Females attain a much greater size than do males, and smaller individuals, primarily males under 200 cm FL, participate in migrations between the north and south Pacific that coincide closely with seasonal abundances of its principle prey, Skipjack Tuna.  Blue Marlin are taken primarily from June to October both by local trollers and foreign longliners.  Another species, the Black Marlin Makaira indica, is infrequently taken around Guam and is distinguished from all other billfishes by its rigid pectoral fins which cannot be pressed flat against its side.  Another species of billfish, the Broadbill Swordfish (Xiphias gladius, family Xiphiidae) is also taken occasionally around Guam.  It has a long spear on its snout like the Blue Marlin and Sailfish but differs from these species by its short, rigid, first dorsal fin and by the absence of pelvic fins, teeth, and body scales.

CIRCUMTROPICAL: All seas warmer than 20°C (68°F).