Journal of Sustainable Tourism
Editors: Bill Bramwell (Sheffield Hallam University) and Bernard Lane (Visiting Research Fellow, Sheffield Hallam University)
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Volume: 6 Number: 2 Page: 97–116
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An Ecotourism Perspective on Billfish Fisheries
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Stephen M. Holland, Robert B. Ditton and Alan R. Graefe
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Tourism is a major source of earnings, supplemental to and possibly replacing those of agriculture and extractive industries in many regions of the world. Fish stocks and the recreational fishing opportunities
they afford are one of many natural resource based attractions that lure tourists to various destinations. Billfish species (blue marlin, black marlin, white marlin, striped marlin and sailfish) are a major
tourism attraction worldwide for recreational fishing enthusiasts. Increasingly, billfish anglers are attempting to act responsibly toward billfish resources. Many have practised catch and release philosophy
and conservation techniques for some time. Many billfish anglers contribute money and time to fisheries conservation organisations and efforts. Can fishing be considered as a form of ecotourism? This paper
reviews definitions of ecotourism to distil six criteria: natural resource based, specific clientele, evidence of responsibility toward the resource, economic support for resource conservation, economic
advantages of appreciative use, and social responsibility to local economy. Evidence is presented that some forms of billfishing meet these criteria and can be considered as ecotourism.
© Channel View Publications 1997
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