are taken commercially in the central Mediterranean, including the Ligurian, Tyrrhenian, Ionian, and Adriatic Seas, but there are no reports of catches by anglers (de Sylva, 1973). Africa. — Sailfish occur along the African coast from at least Dakar to the Gulf of Guinea. This species supports a sizeable commercial fishery off the Gulf of Guinea (Ovchinnikov, 1966). The world-record Atlantic sailfish of 64 kg came from the Ivory Coast, a location where sailfish are reported to occur frequently. Undoubtedly, sailfish are potentially plentiful to the angler along the coast from Dakar into the Gulf of Guinea, although angling facilities including suitable trolling boats are probably scarce. Blue marlin are reported from off Dakar, Guinea, Sierra Leone, and into the Gulf of Guinea, and have been caught by anglers at Ascension and St. Helena Islands. Black marlin are reported in the Japanese longline catches to occur along the Mid-Atlantic Ridge (Ueyanagi et al, 1970); however, no authenticated catch has been made by a commercial or sport fisherman. Swordfish are frequently taken from deep waters along the West African coast. East and South Africa. — Excellent marlin and sailfish angling (Williams, 1970) occurs from Malindi (Kenya) southwards to Durban (Natal). Black marlin, striped marlin, blue marlin, and sailfish are taken seasonally along the coast. White marlin, shortbill spearfish, and longbill spearfish have been reported from waters off South Africa, in an area of mixing between Atlantic and Indian Ocean currents (Penrith and Wapenaar, 1962: Ueyanagi et al, 1970), but their occurrence is rare. Kenyaand Mozambique are also extremely important areas for sportfishing for black marlin and sailfish (Howard and Ueyanagi, 1965), while swordfish are taken on longlines in this region. Large black marlin are taken commercially off northern Madagascar, and sailfish are reported to be taken commercially from waters around the Comoro Islands. There is good angling for black marlin off Mauritius, while commercial charts reveal heavy concentrations of black marlin in the Indian Ocean east of Madagascar along the parallels of lat. 0-10° (Howard and Ueyanagi. 1965; Howard and Starck, 1974). To the north, sailfish have been caught by anglers in the Gulf of Aqaba, Red Sea, and the Gulf of Aden. This species may develop as a sportfishing resource as facilities become available. However, no data are available on seasonal or relative abundance of sailfish in this area. Large sailfish are taken occasionally by anglers in the Persian Gulf. India and Ceylon. — Black, blue, and striped marlin and sailfish are known to occur in Indian coastal waters, but there has been little angling expended in the area. Ceylon has yielded some large black marlin, while shortbill spearfish and swordfish are commercially taken in deeper waters. Deraniyagala (1937: 348) reported that the swordfish "is not uncommon in deep water to the south and east of Ceylon" In the central Indian Ocean east to Sumatra and western Australia, commercial fishing records reveal good catches of black, blue, and striped marlin. Occasional swordfish and shortbill spearfish are also taken. However, sportfishing facilities are limited in these waters and probably will not increase greatly in the future. Howard and Starck (1974) present seasonal distribution charts of longline catches of billfishes from these waters. The South China Sea and Malaysia. — From longline catch records marlin and sailfish are reported to occur throughout Indonesia, the South China Sea, and the Timor and Arafura Seas. Little sport fishing occurs in these waters, largely because of the lack of port facilities and angling equipment. Commercial concentrations of black marlin occur throughout this region. Patrol boats working the Indochina coast have, in their so-called leisure time, seen and hooked black marlin not far from South Viet-nam, though the fish are small and scattered. Although sailfish are common in the fall season close to the coast off Nhatrang, South Viet-nam, the shallow continental shelf along Indochina appears unfavorable ecologically for the larger members of the billfish family. Japan and the East China Sea. — Huge concentrations of striped marlin and sailfish occur off southern Japan. But these concentrations are sufficiently far offshore to be past the ordinary range of potential sportfishing vessels. Presently, however, there is little demand for offshore sportfishing facilities in the area despite the occurrence of many potential game fish species in Japanese waters. Black marlin occur throughout this region, but are not fished for by anglers. Billfishes are also common east of Taiwan, where they are taken commercially, but no sport fishery exists for them. Indonesia, Philippine Sea, and the Philippines. — Billfishes are relatively uncommon in this region, possibly because the thermocline, which is reported to concentrate food, is deep and below angling depths. Scattered catches of black marlin and sailfish are reported by commercial fishermen, 20