Research Document 2017/045
A pre-COSEWIC assessment of Roughhead Grenadier (Macrourus berglax) in Canadian Atlantic and Arctic Waters
By Simpson, M.R., Themelis, D.E., Treble, M., Miri, C.M., Collins, R.K., and Mello, L.G.S.
Abstract
Roughhead Grenadier (Macrourus berglax) is scheduled for assessment by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC), under the federal Species at Risk Act (SARA). In 2007, COSEWIC assessed Roughhead Grenadier as a species of ‘Special Concern’ based on its life history characteristics, a probable decline in abundance in the 1980s and 1990s, and lack of a management plan for grenadier-directed and bycatch fisheries. COSEWIC also determined that this species comprised one Designatable Unit (DU) in Canadian waters, consisting of a continuous distribution along the slope of the continental shelf from Davis Strait to the southern Grand Bank. The primary purpose of this paper is to provide COSEWIC with current knowledge of the biology, life history, abundance, and distribution of Roughhead Grenadier in Canadian Atlantic and Arctic waters to support its evaluation of risk of extinction for this species. This document also summarizes existing information on anthropogenic and natural threats and limiting factors that may impact this species, in addition to current management measures.
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