Intrinsic rate of increase is unknown. Mean age at the onset of maturity ranges from 23 to 29 years for fish from various New Zealand fishing grounds (New Zealand Ministry of Fisheries, 2004b). Orange roughy grow very slowly; male orange roughy growth rate (k) is 0.070 per year and female growth rate is 0.061 per year (New Zealand Ministry of Fisheries, 2004b). On the basis of otolith ring counts and radiometric isotope studies, orange roughy may live up to 120-130 years (New Zealand Ministry of Fisheries, 2004b). Orange roughy is one of the longest-lived fish species known (FishBase, 2004).

Orange Roughy aggregate for spawning and for feeding around topographic features including seamounts, plateaus and canyons (Lack, et al., 2003; New Zealand Ministry of Fisheries, 2004a).

In New Zealand waters, where most orange roughy are caught, orange roughy gather into huge schools for spawning each year from late June to early August. The main spawning grounds around New Zealand are the Challenger Plateau, Cook Canyon, Puysegur Bank, North Chatham Rise, Ritchie Bank and East Cape at depths of between 700-1000 m (New Zealand Ministry of Fisheries, 2004a). The fishery targets these sporadically formed dense spawning and non-spawning aggregations (FishBase, 2004).

Orange roughy has extremely late maturity and extremely low fecundity, making orange roughy populations particularly susceptible to overfishing (New Zealand Ministry of Fisheries, 2004b). Each female carries about 22,000 eggs per kilogram of body weight, which is less than 10 percent of the average for other species (New Zealand Ministry of Fisheries, 2004a). However, while Orange roughy has a relatively low fecundity in terms of numbers of eggs, the eggs are relatively larger than other species, and so egg and larval survival may also be higher than average (personal communication, Pamela Mace and John Annala, New Zealand Minstry of Fisheries, 3 August 2004). Regardless of whether the fecundity of this species warrants classifying it as vulnerable to fishing pressure, Orange roughy's late maturity does qualify the species' life history as being categorized as such.

Mean age at the onset of maturity ranges from 23 to 29 years for fish from various New Zealand fishing grounds (New Zealand Ministry of Fisheries, 2004b). Other sources indicate that orange roughy mature at 20-32 years (Horn et al. 1998; Fenton et al. 1991; Smith, et al. 1995).

Orange roughy are found in 'pockets' of the oceans worldwide and are most abundant off New Zealand, Australia, Namibia, in the northeast Atlantic around the Faroe Islands, off southern Chile, and South of Madagascar (Horn et al., 1998; Strutt, 2000; Branch, 2001). We consider this to be a medium size range.

The latest information on the status of the eleven Orange roughy populations in New Zealand indicate that two populations are above Bmsy, four are probably or possibly above Bmsy, three are below Bmsy (two of these are closed to fishing), and two are of unknown status (Annala et al., 2004). The New Zealand management authorities' target level of abundance (Bmsy) is 30% of pre-fished biomass (Bo).

Nearly half of known orange roughy fisheries worldwide have population abundance below the target used by the New Zealand government (Lack, et al., 2003).

Orange roughy landings peaked at 91,478 tons in 1990, and were down to 48,546 tons in 1995 and 48,988 tons in 1996 (FAO 1997).

Three New Zealand populations of Orange roughy are overfished (Annala et al., 2004). Orange roughy is not on the IUCN Red List.

The fishing techniques used for orange roughy, trawling along seamounts, may cause significant damage to coral habitat (Conner, 2001). Orange roughy aggregate within forests of tree coral, which is estimated to be 300 to 2,000 years old. Trawl gear used in orange roughy fisheries has been shown to reduce benthic biomass and damage slow-growing corals, as well as decrease overall diversity (Lack, et al., 2003).

No gear innovations are being developed or implemented in an attempt to minimize the adverse effects on habitat from trawl gear in Orange roughy fisheries in New Zealand, Australia, Namibia, and countries in the Northeast Atlantic (Lack et al., 2003).

Some Orange roughy fishery managers (in New Zealand, Australia, Namibia, and countries in the Northeast Atlantic) are addressing overfishing by reducing total fishing effort (Lack et al., 2003), which has the effect of reducing habitat damage. And New Zealand has closed fishing at nineteen seamounts (personal communication, Pamela Mace and John Annala, New Zealand Minstry of Fisheries, 3 August 2004).

No points were deducted for this criteria because some action is being taken to reduce habitat damage from Orange roughy fishing gear.

Orange roughy habitat includes seamount coral habitat, which is slow growing and sensitive to damage. The significance and vulnerability of seamount ecosystems, particularly those in the high seas, has been recognized internationally. The United Nations (UN) Open-Ended Informal Consultative Process on Oceans and the Law of the Sea (UNICPOLOS) note in May 2002 that seamounts are one of the underwater features on the high seas that have high levels of endemic species. UNICPOLOS further noted that seamounts constitute a large, as yet un-evaluated, reservoir of biological diversity that may be threatened by human activities in these areas. The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) subsequently endorsed calls for urgent, co-ordinated action to integrate and improve the management of seamounts and other underwater features (Lack, et al., 2003).

Nineteen seamounts in New Zealand are closed to fishing (personal communication, Pamela Mace and John Annala, New Zealand Minstry of Fisheries, 3 August 2004).

Of all global orange roughy fisheries, 80% have a management framework in place specific to orange roughy (Lack, et al., 2003). However, there is only one management arrangements for high seas Orange roughy populations, a trans-Tasman arrangement between New Zealand and Australia for fishing on the South Tasman Rise (personal communication, Pamela Mace and John Annala, New Zealand Minstry of Fisheries, 3 August 2004).

Although management is in place for most orange roughy fisheries, conservation goals are not being adequately addressed in most Orange roughy fisheries. Overfishing is occuring, population abundance is not well understood for half of populations, and habitat damage is being caused by trawl gear (Lack et al., 2003).

Fishery effects on orange roughy habitat are not being directly addressed (Lack et al., 2003).

Overfishing is occuring for the half of populations with known status.

Of the three Orange roughy populations in New Zealand that are below Bmsy (Annala et al., 2004), two are now closed to fishing, and for the third (East Cape), the government reduced the Total Allowable Catch from 3761 tons in 1999-2000 to 1100 tons in 2000-2001, and reduced it again to 680 tons in 2002-2003 (personal communication, Pamela Mace and John Annala, New Zealand Minstry of Fisheries, 3 August 2004).

Because recovery plans are not in place for overfished Orange roughy populations outside of New Zealand, points are deducted for this criteria.

Catch and effort are well monitored in New Zealand. However, despite considerable research, uncertainties persist in relation to key biological characteristics, including population structure (Lack, et al., 2003) and relative and absolute abundance (personal communication, Pamela Mace and John Annala, New Zealand Minstry of Fisheries, 3 August 2004). Due to these uncertaintanties, no points were added here.

Recovery plans are being implemented in New Zealand for Orange roughy (personal communication, Pamela Mace and John Annala, New Zealand Minstry of Fisheries, 3 August 2004), but not for overfished Orange roughy populations outside of New Zealand (Lack et al., 2003), therefore, no points were added here.

Introduction of an ITQ system in New Zealand has ensured that overall fishing capacity is controlled, and there are no subsidies in New Zealand fisheries (personal communication, Pamela Mace and John Annala, New Zealand Minstry of Fisheries, 3 August 2004). In New Zealand, adjustments of Total Allowable Commercial Catches (TACCs) and in some cases, complete closures of certain Orange roughy fishing grounds, have been employed as a management tool for rebuilding low Orange roughy populations (New Zealand Ministry of Fisheries, 2004b).

Bycatch in Orange roughy fisheries is extremely low, estimated to be less than 2% in most areas and years in New Zealand (personal communication, Pamela Mace and John Annala, New Zealand Minstry of Fisheries, 3 August 2004). Most fishing for Orange roughy is conducted on aggregations. As a result, incidental catch of other species is substantially less than in many other trawl fisheries (Lack, et al., 2003). Main bycatch species in New Zealand fisheries are deepwater dogfish, deep-sea catfish, slickheads, rattails, and Basketwork eels (Lack, et al., 2003).

While the total bycatch in deep-sea Orange roughy fisheries is lower than in other trawl fisheries, there is nearly 100% mortality of bycatch species in the Orange roughy fisheries due to the depths from which the species are taken (Lack, et al., 2003).

Deep-sea sharks are also caught as bycatch in Orange roughy fisheries. The Shark Specialist Group of the IUCN has expressed concern because some of the shark species taken in Orange roughy fisheries are not well understood, and some are yet to be taxonomically described (Lack, et al., 2003). A number of chondrichthyan species taken in deep-sea fisheries already fall into the threatened categories of the Red List, including the ¡®Critically Endangered' category (Lack, et al., 2003). For many other species there are insufficient data to make an assessment of their conservation status.

A high score was awarded here because of the low bycatch levels and because bycatch of endangered species in Orange roughy fisheries is a rare occurence.

Deep-sea sharks, some which are listed on the IUCN Red List, are taken as incidental catch or bycatch in orange roughy fisheries (Lack, et al., 2003). Catches of endangered species of deep-sea sharks taken in Orange roughy fisheries are believed by some scientists to be contributing to their decline (Lack, et al., 2003), but available information is inconclusive (personal communication, Pamela Mace and John Annala, New Zealand Minstry of Fisheries, 3 August 2004). Excluding initiatives to reduce fishing effort to address overfishing, no management measures are being taken to manage and reduce shark bycatch in New Zealand Orange roughy fisheries (New Zealand Ministry of Fisheries, 2004b). Because there is a lack of information on whether Orange roughy fisheries are contributing to the decline of threatened and endangered deep-sea sharks, no points are deducted here.