2018 Assessment of the Dusky Rockfish Stock in the Gulf of Alaska
January 30, 2019
In 2017, the scheduled frequency for some stock assessments was changed in response to the National Stock Assessment Prioritization effort (Methot 2015, Hollowed et al. 2016). Prior to 2017, Gulf of Alaska (GOA) rockfish were assessed on a biennial stock assessment schedule to coincide with the availability of new survey data. The new schedule sets full assessments for dusky rockfish in the ‘off’ survey years (even years) and partial assessments for the ‘on’ survey years (odd years). For 2018, we present a full stock assessment document with updated assessment and projection model results.
We use a statistical age-structured model as the primary assessment tool for GOA dusky rockfish, which qualifies as a Tier 3 stock. This assessment consists of a population model, which uses survey and fishery data to generate a historical time series of population estimates, and a projection model, which uses results from the population model to predict future population estimates and recommended harvest levels. For this assessment year, we update the assessment model accepted in 2015 with new data collected since the last full assessment and propose no model changes.