About The Species
Bocaccio are large Pacific coast rockfish that are slow-growing, late to mature, and long-lived. They range from Punta Blanca, Baja California, to the Gulf of Alaska off Krozoff and the Kodiak Islands, but are most common between Oregon and northern Baja California. Having struggled to recover from overfishing, the Puget Sound/Georgia Basin distinct population segment (DPS) of bocaccio is listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act.
Non-ESA listed populations of bocaccio are harvested in commercial and recreational fisheries.
Learn about bocaccio fisheries off the U.S. West Coast and Alaska
Status
NOAA Fisheries is committed to conserving and protecting the Puget Sound/Georgia Basin DPS of bocaccio. Our scientists and partners use a variety of innovative techniques to study, learn more about, and protect this species.
Find bocaccio status reviews
Protected Status
ESA Endangered
1 distinct population segment
- Puget Sound/Georgia Basin DPS
Threats
Bocaccio were once part of a vibrant recreational and commercial groundfish fishery in Puget Sound. Because all rockfish species are an important part of the food web, actions to support rockfish recovery would benefit the Puget Sound ecosystem. For instance, larval rockfish are a food source for juvenile salmon and other marine fish and seabirds.
Rockfish are vulnerable to overfishing because many species do not begin to reproduce until they are 5-20 years old, and very few of their young survive to adulthood. Bocaccio can live over 50 years, and yelloweye rockfish approach up to 150 years. These traits make them susceptible to overfishing and habitat degradation.
Washington State has closed many commercial fisheries that caught rockfish incidentally, and there is no direct commercial harvest of them in Puget Sound. Recreationally, targeting or retaining any species of rockfish in Puget Sound waters east of the Port Angeles area is not allowed.
Through work with our partners, we have supported a number of rockfish recovery actions, including derelict fishing gear surveys (PDF, 19 pages) and prevention (PDF, 15 pages) efforts, kelp conservation and recovery, the distribution of descending devices to recreational anglers, unique habitat and fish surveys, and the development of outreach materials.
Scientific Classification
Animalia |
Chordata |
Actinopterygii |
Scorpaeniformes |
Sebastidae |
Sebastes |
paucispinus |