Rockfish are among Alaska’s most beloved fish, yet they aren’t widely known or celebrated across the country.
Rockfish are abundant in shallow, rocky waters from California all the way to Alaska’s Aleutian Islands, but they don’t gather in the massive schools that cod, salmon, or halibut do. They are long-lived and slow to reproduce, which makes them especially vulnerable to overfishing if not managed carefully. You may be familiar with yelloweye rockfish from your share — they can live up to 150 years. Rougheye rockfish are even more remarkable, with some individuals aged at over 200 years.
With more than 30 species, rockfish present a range of management challenges — and solutions. In California, many rockfish species were overfished by the late 1990s. Advances in trawling technology allowed fishermen to access new areas before adequate regulations were in place. By 1999, multiple species had been declared overfished, and many fisheries were shut down.
Ryan Horwath of F/V Lady Viking hauling in rockfish
Lawmakers responded decisively by setting strict harvest quotas and closing some areas to fishing. California also established Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), which act as “banks” of healthy fish to help repopulate depleted regions. Today, about 16% of state waters are protected. With these measures in place, faster-growing species like canary and bocaccio rockfish have rebounded more quickly than expected. Smaller hook-and-line fisheries are now operating with stabilized populations, and we’re even working with partners in the Bay Area to share with you soon.
In Alaska, fisheries managers took a more precautionary approach from the start, implementing strict harvest limits early on. Scientists studied populations statewide and applied ecosystem-based management, treating fisheries as part of a broader living system rather than isolated species. By balancing harvest with overall ecosystem health, Alaska has maintained stable rockfish populations. Quotas remain low due to their slow reproduction, and the state’s vast marine habitat — combined with relatively low fishing pressure — means many populations remain largely unfished.
Canary Rockfish
Most of the rockfish in your shares comes from Kodiak, where a dedicated hook-and-line fleet harvests them. While Kodiak is known for its large industrial fisheries — like crabbers featured on Deadliest Catch and offshore trawlers — rockfishing offers smaller vessels a more accessible entry point. These fish are caught individually, then bled and chilled immediately, resulting in noticeably higher quality. If you come across inexpensive rockfish on the West Coast, take a look at the color: trawl-caught fish often have a pinkish hue from not being bled, along with a stronger, “fishier” flavor.
Darius Kasperzak and Ryan Horwath
Outside of Sitka in Southeast Alaska, much of the commercial rockfish quota goes uncaught, as fishermen focus on salmon and other species during the short summer season. We’ve worked with several fishermen to try jigging for rockfish, but most couldn’t find sufficient quantities close enough to town to make it viable. Jigging is where you have a weighted line with multiple hooks that you send down to fish with. It’s one of the most sustainable gear types and allows fishermen to be selective on what they harvest and if they are finding their target species they can move on without harming the ecosystem. Rockfish can be paradoxical — you can often catch one quickly by dropping a line almost anywhere, but targeting a specific species is much more difficult.
Yelloweye rockfish
Most rockfish are caught as carefully monitored bycatch in the halibut and black cod (sablefish) longline fisheries. This is especially important for species like rougheye and yelloweye, which are extremely long-lived and slow to recover. There is also a small directed fishery for yelloweye in February, though it doesn’t occur every year, allowing populations time to rebound. These openings typically take place in the Fairweather Grounds, a highly productive area of offshore reefs. Rough weather and distance from shore limit fishing pressure for much of the year. While harvesting such long-lived species may seem counterintuitive, it can be sustainable when most of the biomass remains untouched and catches are closely monitored.
Around Sitka, however, there are emerging challenges tied to a growing sport-fishing fleet. Halibut permits are expensive, and king salmon seasons are often restricted, so guides frequently target black rockfish to ensure their clients bring home fish. This can lead to concentrated fishing pressure, with hundreds of boats working the same areas daily, causing what’s known as “local depletion” — when harvest in a small area outpaces the population’s ability to replenish. Even so, large unfished areas continue to support healthy populations, functioning much like California’s MPAs.
Rockfish are one of our favorite fish to harvest and share with you. Here’s to the unheralded star of your next ceviche or fish taco: the humble, delicious rockfish.
Marsh Skeele
Marsh is our original fisherman and helped start Sitka Seafood Market over a decade ago. He grew up fishing with his family outside of Sitka and began his own fishing journey captaining the F/V Loon in 2011. Shortly thereafter at a dinner party sharing his catch, he met friends that figured out how to get his fish to the Midwest and Sitka Seafood Market was born. He loves finding the highest quality ingredients and sharing the stories of their harvest over a dinner party. You can find him fishing with his family in Sitka and searching for the next delicious piece of seafood to share with you.
