A Synthesis of Fifteen Years of Scuba Surveys at Seven Locations in Puget Sound

The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife conducted systematic SCUBA based underwater visual censuses at seven sites in central Puget Sound over a 15- year period beginning in 1995 (no surveys were conducted in 1998).  A total of over 500 surveys were conducted over fixed transects in both spring and fall, and all bottomfish as defined by Washington Administrative Code were targeted in the survey effort.  All sites were composed of high relief natural or anthropogenic structure known to attract actively managed and ecologically important bottomfish species such as rockfish, lingcod, perch, and cabezon, and included both protected and non-protected locations.  One of the sites surveyed has been protected for over thirty years, longer than any other location in Puget Sound.  We will present an analysis of trends in abundance, biomass, species composition, recruitment, and reproductive potential for rockfish within and among sites.  We anticipate that our findings will inform fishery and habitat managers and aid their efforts in maintaining sustainable fisheries and biodiversity, recovering species of conservation concern, and identifying species-specific critical habitats in Puget Sound.