this fishery in step with good conservation practices 

 through knowledge of existing biological and industry 

 relationships. 



ROCKFISH 



The rockfish or "rock cods" are abundant in Cali- 

 fornia waters, wherein about 50 species are found. 

 Adults of the many species of rockfish are taken from 

 shallow water close to shore to well offshore and a 

 depth of about 2,400 feet. 



Some of the forms occurring in California are dis- 

 tributed from Lower California to Alaska, but others 

 are more restricted in their distribution. A few species 

 are small, hardly reaching 10 inches when fully grown, 

 while some other species may attain a length of 36 

 inches. For the most part, rockfish are found oflF rocky 

 coasts or over a rocky or gravelly bottom, but a few 

 species occur over a hard sandy bottom. 



Rockfish were of commercial importance in Cali- 

 fornia as early as 1875. In 1900, the catch was be- 

 tween one and two million pounds. In 1918, the catch 

 had increased to eight million pounds as a consequence 

 of the increased demand for food during World 

 War I. Following a postwar slump, landings increased 

 CO 13 million pounds in 1945, reflecting World War II 

 demands. Following another postwar slump, the annual 

 catch has fluctuated between 1 2 and 1 3 million pounds 

 since 1953. 



Sportsman's Take 



During the past 10 years, sport fishing in ocean 

 \\aters has become well established and rockfish are 

 now an important component of this catch. Party boat 

 catch records for all California reveal that in 1947 

 about 2 \A million fish were landed by anglers, of which 

 rockfish comprised about 10 percent; in 1955 slightly 

 over three million fish were landed, of which half 

 were rockfish. 



In addition to the catches made from the several 

 hundred party boats operating in California ocean 

 waters, rockfish are also caught by anglers operating 

 from motor boats, skiffs, piers, and shore and are also 

 taken by skin divers. 



Prior to 1943 most of the commercial fishery for 

 rockfish was in southern and central California. The 

 majority of the catches were made by means of set- 

 lines, a series of baited hooks attached to a long line. 

 During this period only about 5 percent of the annual 

 total was landed by operators of the old-type drag 

 net that was rigged for catching flatfish on the bottom 

 of the sea. 



Dragnet Modified 



Late in 1943 a modified version of the dragnet, de- 

 signed for capturing rockfish, was introduced into 

 Northern California. This modification, termed a 

 "balloon trawl," proved so successful that by the end 

 of 1944 most of the catches of rockfish were being 

 made with this type of gear in northern and central 

 California waters. Although dragnet gear is now ac- 



A fureico longline vessel, the Franz Joseph, drifting 10 miles offshore 

 while fishing for sablefish. 



(Fish and Game Photo by J. B. Phillips) 



counting for the bulk of the rockfish landed in Cali- 

 fornia, there are still a few small boats that fish with 

 setline gear, particularly along the section of the 

 Southern California coast where dragnets are pro- 

 hibited. 



Frozen Filleis 



For man\- years a large portion of the rockfish catch 

 has been marketed in the form of fillets. During 

 World War II the freezing of fillets was given a strong 

 impetus because of military demands. A small portion 

 of the catch is marketed in a fresh, dressed form. In 

 previous \ears small amounts of rockfish have been 

 salted. Experimental canning of rockfish has been 

 tried but did not prove profitable. 



SABLEFISH 



Results of studies on the sablefish (black cod) which 

 were carried on jointly by the fisheries departments 

 of Alaska, Canada, VVashington, Oregon, and Cali- 

 fornia were published by the Pacific A'larine Fisheries 

 Commission in Bulletin 3, released late in 1954. 



Sablefish form the basis of a minor but steady fish- 

 ery along the Pacific Coast, primarily because of the 

 popularit\- of the product in a smoked form. Since 

 1946, the average annual Pacific Coast landings have 

 been about 10 million pounds, with California account- 

 ing for about 2 million pounds. The fishery is ex- 

 ploited by both longline (setline) and otter trawl 

 (dragnet) fishermen. 



Studies on the abundance of sablefish in California 

 waters, based on an analysis of the commercial fisher\', 

 indicate that the catch per trip has continued to remain 

 fairly constant since 1941. Fluctuations in seasonal 

 catches are quite closely correlated with economic fac- 

 tors. Inasmuch as the greatest portion of the Pacific 

 Coast catch is placed in cold storage for future smok- 

 ing, a large cold storage holding in one year is asso- 

 ciated with a relatively low catch in the ensuing year, 

 and vice versa. 



Because the return per unit of effort is being main- 

 tained and because there have been no new develop- 

 ments in the utilization of this species, further regula- 



