Species Recovery Projects
Rockfish
Several Alliance aquariums are collaborating to understand population trends in Rockfish (Sebastes sp.) in Puget Sound and the Strait of Georgia. Populations of these slow-maturing, long-lived species are at an all time low, leaving the fishery in crisis.
Vancouver Aquarium, with help from trained volunteer divers, is surveying Rockfish abundance, both in and out of protected marine areas, to determine whether the protected areas align well with Rockfish habitat. Seattle Aquarium has been systematically monitoring and tracking Rockfish abundance and distribution at a research site, in the Strait of Juan de Fuca near Neah Bay, for several years. Seattle Aquarium is adding several new research sites in Puget Sound, including a site that Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium staff will monitor, following training by Seattle Aquarium staff.
