Dear Fisher,

We are looking for old female black rockfish and are hoping you can help us find them. We would appreciate it if you filled out this questionnaire to help guide the ODFW Marine Fisheries Research Team in finding them.

During the last stock assessment, scientists showed that the proportion of female black rockfish observed in fisheries catch data starts declining as fish reach ~10 years in age (17”). By age 20, the catch is almost entirely males. This begs the following questions. Do large older females die before they reach older ages, and therefore we don’t catch them? Alternatively, if older female black rockfish exist, are we not catching them because we use the wrong gear or are we looking in the wrong spot? Knowing if the number of old female black rockfish is truly just a low number or if the catch data is not representing the population is very important. We use these data to determine reproductive output of the population.

The answers to these questions are critically important to black rockfish management. Rather than speculate on if they are dead or where they are, we are trying to use your knowledge to help provide better data for upcoming black rockfish stock assessments.

Sincerely,

Leif Rasmuson (leif.k.rasmuson@odfw.oregon.gov )

Marine Fisheries Research Project Leader

Link to the survey:  https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeGIoSO9bvEDuzgV3N2VEtWvrtk2_vFatbhFVPVh9UcmchgVw/viewform?usp=sf_link