Race Updates
The 2023 Bermuda IGFA Great Marlin Race (IGMR) kicked off in July 2023 with three tags generously sponsored for deployment on blue marlin. The first tag of the event was deployed on July 2, 2023 on a blue marlin by Scott Poole after being reeled in by Ven Poole while aboard Waste Knot with Captain Michael Tickle. The second tag of the event was deployed four days later on July 6, 2023 on a 250 lb (113 kg) blue marlin by Zach Granta after a quick fight with Scott Poole while aboard Waste Knot with Captain Michael Tickle. The third and final tag of the event was deployed two weeks later on July 23, 2023 on a 175 lb (79 kg) blue marlin by Matt Wardlaw after being reeled in by Marc Verzaleno while aboard Reel Steel with Captain Jason Parker.
The tag on Fish 2 (tag # L330-4156) was the first to surface on March 2, 2024 after reaching the full programmed deployment time of 240 days, 2,022 nm from the tagging location. Following deployment, this fish initially traveled north for one month before turning southeast. The fish continued traveling south for the remainder of the deployment until the tag popped off near the coast of Brazil for a total estimated track length of 4,526 nm. Over the course of the deployment, Fish 2 spent approximately 50% of the time within 10 m (33 ft) of the surface where the water temperature ranged from 24 to 30˚C (75 – 86˚F). Time at depth was greatest between 25 and 150 m (82 – 492 ft) where the water temperature ranged from 13 to 30˚C (55 – 86˚F). The deepest dive occurred near the end of August 2023 to a depth of 566 m (1,857 ft) where the water temperature was 13˚C (55˚F), the coldest water experienced during the deployment.
The tag on Fish 3 was next to surface on March 19, 2023 after also reaching the full programmed deployment time of 240 days, 4,477 nm from the tagging location, taking third place on the IGMR leaderboard of longest point-to-point distance. Following deployment, Fish 3 traveled south towards the
Caribbean, circled back northeast into the Atlantic and then turned southeast. The fish continued on this path until it was south of Cape Verde where it circled for a month before continuing southeast across the equator. Fish 3 reached 26˚S before reversing direction north where the tag popped off west of Angola for a total estimated track length of 8,786 nm*. Ove the course of the deployment, Fish 3 spent approximately 50% of the time within 10 m (33 ft) of the surface where the water temperature ranged between 25 and 30˚C (77 – 86˚F). Time at depth was greatest between 25 and 100 m (82 – 328 ft) where the water temperature ranged between 15 and 29˚C (59 – 84˚F). The deepest dive occurred in January 2024 to a depth of 267 m (876 ft) where the water temperature was 15˚C (59˚F), the coldest water experienced during the deployment.
The tag on Fish 1 (tag # L330-4162) did not report. Although this is an unfortunate result, it highlights the inherent challenges of tagging large, wide-ranging fish in the ocean.
The two tracks generated by the 2023 Bermuda IGMR both reached the full programmed deployment length, accumulating 480 days of data and 6,499 nm of distance between tagging and deployment locations. Both tracks moved south towards the equator, a behavior often observed in blue marlin tagged in the West Atlantic. However, Fish 3 continued south across the equator and traveled the farthest south to 26˚S of any IGMR blue marlin tagged in the North Atlantic. The distance from tagging to popup was the third longest in IGMR history and would have taken second place on the leaderboard if the tag popped off at the southern extent of the track. Exemplary tracks like the two in this year’s event highlight the importance of continued long-term tagging.
We are very excited to add more data from Atlantic blue marlin to the IGMR database and hope to increase this data set in years to come. We are grateful to the tag sponsors, captains, anglers, crew, and all other participants that made the 2023 Bermuda IGMR so successful. These datasets help us to learn about billfish behavior in an effort to increase their conservation and protect the sport we love for future generations of fishing!
