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Could be trouble...Rockfish Plan out for review, meetings scheduled

2K views 31 replies 14 participants last post by  cabezon 
#1 ·
http://wdfw.wa.gov/do/newreal/release.php?id=oct1909a

The proposed plan is out for review and could significantly impact all fishing in Puget Sound. Included in the plan are proposals to establish Marine Protected Areas throughout the sound which have the potential to not only stop harvest, but fishing and perhaps even boating access as well. I haven't done my homework on this yet, but Rob Tobeck has, and I encourage you to check his blog for more questions and answers.

http://blog.theoutdoorline.com/author/Rob-Tobeck.aspx

This could turn out to be a big deal, and the Dept. has established a short review period - Nov 19. Please take a few minutes to look and if you have time to attend a meeting, please do so, and ask the hard questions.

Thanks, Gents.
 
#30 ·
Rockfish are not greatly sexually dimorphic according to The Rockfishes of the Northweast Pacific by Milton Love, Mary Yoklavich, and Lyman Thorsteinson. There are some minor differences in the anal area (urogenital papilla) and some differences on proportions. Females in most species reach a larger maximum size than do males.

Another interesting aspect of rockfish biology (and perhaps a limit on their overall fecundity) is that they are viviparous, giving birth after 1-2 months to late larval stages, producing live larvae after internal fertilization. Most larval rockfish are 3-4mm when released and remain in the water column for a few months or up to a year before transforming into juveniles.

One issue that has come up in the discussion regarding factors impacting rockfish populations has been predation by pinnipeds. With the explosion of pinnipeds, such as sea lions and harbor seals, the potential for predation on "rockfish" is huge. But, if it is Puget Sound rockfish (Sebastes emphaeus) that seals and sea lions are eating, this species is abundant. And it is likely that larger rockfish individuals among the recreationally-important species (quillbacks, coppers, blacks, yellowtails), are less vulnerable to predation than are smaller fish.

Steve
 
#31 ·
Cabezon -
Is that a great reference book!

To illustrate the potential impact for seals using the numbers provided in the State's report "The Biology andn Assessment of Rockfishes in Puget Sound" that the harbor seals in the San Jaun Islands are eating 1.7 million pounds of rockfish a year. And yes I agree that it is probable that most of those rockfish are likley Puget Sound rockfish. Maybe that is why the status of the north Puget Sound rockfish stock is listed as Precautionary and not healthy.

Tight lines
Curt
 
#32 ·
During gradual school at U.C.S.B., I had the good fortune to TA for Milton Love when he pinch hit for my advisor, Al Ebeling. Milton was a font of funny stories, about his fish research and working with fishermen and fish processors to cajole samples, to Hollywood dinner parties which degenerated into discussion of fish parasites. [Milton tried to make a go of it as a screenwriter at one point.]

He also wrote Probably More Than You Want to Know about Fishes of the Pacific Coast, a humorous, but fact-filled take on the typical fish field guide.

For the two decades, his team has been doing some very interesting work on the potential for old oil rigs off California to enhance bottom fish populations. The original leases specify that the oil companies must remove the rigs. Some folks have made the argument that they are valuable artificial habitat and should be allowed to stay. The issue is very interesting.

Steve
 
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