Pacific cod, walleye pollock and some types of salmon have been found in more areas of U.S. Arctic waters and sleeper sharks are now established there, according to a new report released by the U.S. Geological Survey and U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management.
In all, 109 species of marine fishes have been identified in the Chukchi and Beaufort seas, and 20 are new to the list, according to the report, first posted on the USGS website Monday. Another 63 species have changed their ranges from what was previously documented, according to the report.
Though salmon, Pacific cod and pollock are important to Alaska commercial fishermen, most fishing in Alaska's Arctic marine waters is for subsistence purposes, according to the state Department of Fish and Game. State waters support some relatively small commercial harvests but there is no commercial fishing in U.S. Arctic waters. The North Pacific Fishery Management Council in 2009 approved a management plan that bars Arctic commercial harvests for the foreseeable future. Despite its name, the North Pacific council has authority in the Arctic Ocean.
