August 6, 2026 — The Marine Fisheries Research Project team from the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife headed out to sea on Aug. 1.
Their destination: Cobb Seamount, about 300 miles west of the Washington coast.
Their goal: to find older female black, canary, or yellowtail rockfish.
Since the early 1990s, fisheries scientists on the West Coast have noticed a peculiar trend in black, yellowtail, and canary rockfish populations: the older females get, the fewer of them there are.
Marine Fisheries Research Project leader Leif Rasmuson and other members of his team boarded Oregon State University’s research vessel Pacific Storm for a 47-hour steam to the research site. The trip is part of OSU’s Oceangoing Research Vessel Program.
It took the crew two days to reach Cobb Seamount, where they’ll spend about 11 days searching for older female rockfish. Additionally, they’ll also collect genetic samples, attach satellite tags to fish, and document other marine life, including sunflower sea stars.