About the Rogue Reef Rocky Shore Area
Description
Rogue Reef is found approximately two miles northwest of the mouth of the Rogue River, which is on the northern end of Gold Beach, in Curry County, Oregon. Rogue Reef is offshore of Otter Point, near Gold Beach, Oregon |
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Designation
USFWS Oregon Islands National Wildlife Refuge (NWR). Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) has a seasonal closure for the area around Pyramid Rock. |
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Key Resources
Approximately 4,000 common murres and more than 500 Brandt's cormorants nest here. More than 1,800 threatened Steller sea lions (45% of state total) use this reef, forming the largest pupping site for this species in the U.S., south of Alaska. Over 300 harbor seals are also found here. There is significant harvest of red sea urchins from the reef. There are large kelp beds (Nereocystis) in the reef complex. |
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What can you do here?
Commercial harvest of red sea urchins; commercial and recreational fishing for rockfish (Sebastes spp.), lingcod, and other fish; some sport SCUBA diving. |
Getting to the Rocky shore at Rogue Reef
Access is by boat only (or visually from the coast). The closest boat launch is the Port of Gold Beach, slightly south of the Rogue Reef complex.
Who Owns this Site? Submerged and submersible (intertidal) lands: Division of State Lands; rocks above Mean High Water: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. |
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Who Manages this Site?
Offshore rocks are managed as part of the Oregon Islands National Wildlife Refuge. The ODFW has established a 1000-foot seasonal closure to all fishing, shellfish and marine invertebrate harvest around Pyramid Rock from May 1 to August 31. The National Marine Fisheries Service has designated a 3000-foot wide area around Pyramid Rock as critical habitat but has enacted no additional regulations. There is a voluntary invertebrate harvest closure within 1000 feet of both Long Brown Rock and Needle Rock in the summer. |
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Data for the Rogue Reef Rocky Shore
[4 Records Listed]
Rogue Reef Rocky Shore GIS Data |
Data Layer |
Source |
Scale |
Year |
Download |
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USGS |
24,000 |
1994 |
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USGS |
24,000 |
1986 |
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Ecotrust |
100,000 |
2010 |
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Ecotrust |
100m |
2010 |
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[4 Records Listed]
Information compiled by Laurel Hillmann, NOAA Coastal Management Fellow, OPRD |