Billfish

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Predatory fish[edit | edit source]

Billfish are a group of predatory fish characterised by prominent bills, or rostra, and by their large size; some are longer than 4 m (13 ft). Billfish include sailfish and marlin, which make up the family Istiophoridae, and swordfish, sole member of the family Xiphiidae.

The largest billfish, the Atlantic blue marlin, weighs up to 820 kg (1800 lb) and has been classified as a vulnerable species.[1][2]

Bill fish conservation act in the US[edit | edit source]

The Billfish Conservation Act of 2012 was signed into law on October 5, 2012 and amended on August 2, 2018. The Act's definition of billfish exempts swordfish, but includes black marlin, blue marlin, longbill spearfish, mediterranean spearfish, sailfish, shortbill spearfish, striped marlin, and white marlin.

The law, in general, prohibits any person from offering billfish or billfish products for sale, selling them, or having custody, control, or possession of them for purposes of offering them for sale


Portions of content adapted from Wikipedia's article on Billfish which is released under the CC BY-SA 3.0.


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  1. Makaira nigricans bioSearch. Updated: 20 January 2011.
  2. Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named IUCNMMnigricans
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