Sablefish
Commonly caught off the Washington coast by commercial harvesters using otter-trawls, jig handline, and longline gear. Juveniles are occasionally caught by recreational harvesters in Puget Sound, which is a sablefish nursery.
Description and Range
Physical description
Sablefish are a large robust fish with an elongate body and two dorsal fins. Adults are blackish or greenish gray above, usually with slightly paler blotches or a chainlike pattern on the upper back, and paler below. The anal fin is similar in appearance to and opposite the second dorsal fin. This species has small scales and is weakly ctenoid.
The sablefish can grow up to 100 cm (30 in) in length. Maximum age is at least 90 years old.
Geographic range
They range from Japan north into the Bering Sea and south through Alaska and British Columbia to Mexico, with highest concentrations in Alaska. Sablefish are wide-ranging and often migratory. Adults can be found on mud bottom in depths of 300 to 1,500 m (984-4,900 ft).
State record
- Weight
- 30.00 lbs
- Angler
- Jeff Rudolph
- Location
- Westport, Grays Harbor County
- Date Caught
- June 28, 1994