Table of Contents

1. Can I have your yellow hat?
2. How old is a 40 pound halibut?
3. Does the length-weight table really work?
4. Do I need a fishing license from the IPHC?
5. I've caught a tagged halibut...what do I do now?
6. Where do I find the list of Oregon hotspots?

Can I have your yellow hat?

No.

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How old is a 40 pound halibut?

Quick answer: 12.  Actually, there is no simple answer to this question. It all depends on the sex of the fish and from which regulatory area it came. Female halibut tend to grow faster, so a 40 pound female would be younger than a 40 pound male.  Also, halibut seem to grow faster the farther north(west) you go:  a 40 lb fish off the coast of Washington State is likely to be a lot older than a 40 lb fish off of Kodiak I., AK.

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Does the length-weight table really work?

According to our scientists, the table is very accurate.   Back in 1926, 454 halibut were caught off Masset, B.C.  Their fork lengths and weights were measured and a formula was worked out:

W_N = 6.921x10^-6 x L^3.24 , where W_N=(head-off, eviscerated wt in pounds)
        and L=(fork length in cm)

In 1989, Bill Clark looked at the length-weight relationship of 5184 fish caught from B.C. to the eastern Aleutian Islands.  Bill found that his data matched very closely with the 1926 formula, which was "higher on average by about 1%, but there is no practical difference..."  Like all things in nature, a single halibut's weight can deviate up to 10-20% from the norm; but, taken in a group of say, 20 or more fish, these random errors should cancel out.

The length-weight table is available in centimeters or inches.

If you would like further information, please contact Bill Clark (206) 634-1838 ext. 219.

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Do I need a fishing license from the IPHC?

The IPHC no longer issues licenses for fishing in Alaska or British Columbia. Federal and State permit requirements must still be fulfilled, however.

IPHC licenses are necessary for commercial and sport fishing in Area 2A.  An applications for a 2005 license is available here.

NOTE:  If you made a commercial landing or held an IPHC Sport Charter License last year, you will automatically be mailed a renewal form.

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I've caught a tagged halibut...what do I do now?

When the fish is caught, do not remove the tag.  (This is particularly important with the two-tone orange spaghetti-wire tags.  Please see our News Release).  If it is caught commercially (when the tagged fish will be mixed in with many other halibut in a hold) tie a rope or gangion around the tail (or through the mouth) so identification will be easier at the time of landing.  It should be noted that tagged fish may be retained even if it is undersized (<81.3 cm) or if the fisher does not have the proper permit(s) to fish for halibut.

Once in port, there are a number of things you can do.  If you are in Bellingham WA, Homer AK, Juneau AK, Kodiak AK, Petersburg AK, Port Hardy BC, Prince Rupert BC, Seward AK, Sitka AK, or Vancouver BC, the best thing to do is track down the Commission Port Sampler.  Local fisheries offices should know how to get in touch with them (or contact the IPHC office (206) 634-1838).  If there is no Port Sampler available, National Marine Fisheries Service enforcement officers in the U.S. or Archipelago Marine Research port validators in Canada should be notified.  The third option is to try to collect the data by yourself.

The U. S. Geological Survey is doing habitat research using halibut and satellite pop-up tags.  For more information, go to the Alaska Biological Science Center site.

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Where do I find the list of Oregon hotspots?

It seems a magazine made a statement that a map of Oregon fishing hotspots could be found on this website.  We're not exactly certain what this refers to--the nearest we can figure is that they were talking about the IPHC's 1999 survey data.

This survey information was collected during a structured grid survey, so it shows where the halibut were and where they weren't, at least during that summer in 1999. It's not a list of hotspots, though the data might give an indication of where the halibut like to reside. Halibut move around, especially during spawning season (late fall/winter); so where they are greatly depends on the time of year.  The fish may be at the locations indicated in the survey data or they may not.

Information from the IPHC surveys can be found here.

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Have a question?  Contact us.
Revised: January 27, 2005.