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Tagging mahi aboard Calm Chaos off Rhode Island on 9.17.2024 Photo: Phenom Yachts
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The Dolphinfish Research Program (DRP), through its engagement with anglers along the U.S. East Coast over the last 24 years, has documented 54 dolphinfish return migrants along the U.S. East Coast. Our program defines return migrants as fish that were recovered on the same coast where they were released in a year subsequent to when they were tagged. Taggers Livolsi, Kalb, and Cathey were the first to have their fish document this movement pattern from Florida and North Carolina, and Rinaldi from the Mid-Atlantic Bight (off New York). By the numbers, our program has received 1-3 examples of return migrants each season, with the most examples documented from tagging activity off Florida (n=51). This past month, we received a report that documented the first return migrant for dolphinfish tagging activity based out of the Ocean State. Click here to read more about this important dolphin recapture.
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May North Carolina
Tagging Expedition
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In May, we embarked on a tagging expedition to North Carolina, and it was a big success. Working with Grady-White Boats (G-W), we deployed a satellite tag sponsored by G-W on a 36" female aboard Seahorse. This was the first satellite tag that our program has deployed fishing out of Beaufort, North Carolina, and during the outing we tagged and released 7 dolphin ranging in size from 26"-36" fork-length with the G-W team. Thanks G-W for your help and support of this outing! After this outing, we moved to Hatteras, NC, and we deployed another satellite tag on a 36" bull working with the crew of Marlin Gull. During that outing, we tagged and released 5 dolphin ranging in size from 24"-36" FL. These satellite tag deployments were the 4th and 5th for our program off North Carolina over the past year. To learn more about our satellite tracking program click here.
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Support Our Work - Shop or Donate!
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FL to NC & NC May Recaptures
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Dolphin Management Update
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In late April, the Dolphin Wahoo Advisory Panel (AP), which consists of 18 AP members, convened in South Carolina to discuss updates on the status of the stocks, amendments, and science regarding dolphin and wahoo along the U.S. East Coast. During the meeting, the AP unanimously supported an action to implement a 20" minimum size from Florida through Maine, but allow for 1 dolphin < than 20" but not less than 18" per vessel for recreational anglers, and 3 fish < than 20" but not less than 18" for charter vessels. In addition, there was unanimous support for another action. Click here to read about that action.
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Support Our Research in 2025
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For the past seven years, we have built a 501(c)(3) known as the Beyond Our Shores Foundation to manage and expand an international tagging program on dolphinfish and focus on other key fisheries research topics throughout the western central Atlantic and eastern tropical Pacific Oceans. With the support of hundreds of private donors and several key corporate sponsors, the Dolphinfish Research Program continues to compile new movement records and data on dolphinfish in the Western Central Atlantic and Eastern Tropical Pacific Ocean. As of today, 38,181 dolphinfish have been tagged for the DRP and 875 recaptures have been recorded. In addition, 127 satellite tags have been deployed on dolphinfish and eleven on wahoo. Collectively, these data have been used to publish 17 scientific articles, and the data is publicly available at dolphintagging.com/map. With three key scientific papers in preparation on dolphinfish growth, detailed regional movement dynamics, and catch and effort as well as our ambitious distribution goals this year (400 kits and 5,000 tags), we need your support to achieve these key outcomes.
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Help the DRP expand in 2025. Click the icons below to shop or donate to support our program.
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| | Eastern Tropical Pacific Research Partners
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