Yelloweye Rockfish

Protected Status

ESA Threatened

Puget Sound/ Georgia Basin DPS

Quick Facts

Weight

40 pounds

Lifespan

Up to 118 years

Length

Up to 3.5 feet

Threats

Overfishing, Bycatch

Location

Alaska, West Coast

See Regulatory Actions

Yelloweye rockfish swimming in the ocean.

About the Species

Yelloweye rockfish are among the longest lived of rockfishes, living up to 118 years. This species is slow growing, late to mature, and long-lived. Although conservation measures like fishing bans have been put in place, recovery from threats such as overfishing and bycatch will take many years due to the life history of yelloweye rockfish. The Puget Sound/Georgia Basin DPS in Washington State is listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act.

NOAA Fisheries is committed to conserving and protecting yelloweye rockfish. Our scientists and partners use a variety of innovative techniques to study, learn more about, and protect this species.

ESA Threatened

1 distinct population segment

Puget Sound/ Georgia Basin DPS

Scientific Classification

Kingdom	Animalia
Phylum	Chordata
Class	Actinopterygii
Order	Scorpaeniformes
Family	Sebastidae
Genus	Sebastes
Species	ruberrimus

Management Overview

The Puget Sound/Georgia Basin DPS of yelloweye rockfish in Washington State is listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act.

Regulatory History

In February 1999, we received a petition from Mr. Sam Wright of Olympia, Washington to list 18 species of marine fishes in Puget Sound, including this species, under the ESA. On June 21, 1999, we found that there was insufficient information concerning stock structure, status, and trends for this species to suggest that listing this species may be warranted (64 FR 33037).

On April 9, 2007, we received a petition from Mr. Sam Wright (Olympia, Washington) to list "distinct population segments (DPSs)" of yelloweye rockfish, and 4 other rockfishes in Puget Sound, as endangered or threatened species under the ESA and to designate critical habitat. We found that this petition also did not present substantial scientific or commercial information to suggest that the petitioned actions may be warranted (72 FR 56986; October 5, 2007). On October 29, 2007, we received a letter from Mr. Wright presenting information that was not included in the April 2007 petition, and requesting reconsideration of the decision not to initiate a review of the species' status. We considered the supplemental information as a new petition and concluded that there was enough information in this new petition to warrant conducting status reviews of these rockfishes. We completed the status review in December 2010.

In April 2010, we listed the Puget Sound/ Georgia Basin DPS as threatened under the ESA.

Documents

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