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WCR_HMS_EFH_20241021_Striped_marlin

Published by West Coast Regional Office | National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce | Catalog Last Checked: August 03, 2026 at 12:36 AM | Dataset Last Updated: July 21, 2026 at 07:43 PM
Striped marlin EFH is defined using a combination of data sources described in the FMP as well as expert opinion. Based on catch data the majority of fish landed in the U.S. EEZ are adults. Striped marlin EFH includes oceanic, epipelagic waters of the U.S. West Coast EEZ from the U.S.-Mexico border to just north of Point Conception, California (34° 34' N), seaward of the 12 m depth contour. While striped marlin may occur in shallow water <12 m, they occur primarily in deeper waters and these shallow regions including bays and estuaries are not considered essential. The relatively warmer temperature, high productivity and presence of diverse fish, squid and crustacean species make the SCB a suitable foraging habitat for adult striped marlin.The Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSA) requires that regional management councils describe EFH in their fishery management plans (FMPs), that they minimize to the extent practicable adverse effects on EFH from fishing activities, and that federal agencies consult with the National Marine Fisheries Service on activities that may adversely affect EFH, among other things. Actions that occur outside of EFH, but that may adversely affect EFH, also warrant an EFH consultation. EFH means those waters and substrate necessary to fish for spawning, breeding, feeding, or growth to maturity (50 CFR 600.10). FMPs must describe and identify EFH in text that clearly states the habitats or habitat types determined to be EFH for each life stage of the managed species, if possible. The text descriptions are ultimately determinative of the limits of EFH. Those text descriptions of HMS EFH can be found in the HMS FMP available on the Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) website: https://www.pcouncil.org/. In addition, FMPs must include maps that display, within the constraints of available information, the geographic locations of EFH or the geographic boundaries within which EFH for each species and life stage is found (50 CFR 600.815(a)(1)(v)(A)). This Geographic Information System (GIS) data which depicts the EFH of HMS within the EEZ off the U.S. West Coast, was developed to meet that requirement.

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