A Status Review of Pinto Abalone (Haliotis kamtschatkana) Along the West Coastof North America: Interpreting Trends, Addressing Uncertainty, and Assessing Risk for a Wide-Ranging Marine Invertebrate Journal of Shellfish Research

Pinto abalone ( Haliotis kamtschatkana ), the widest ranging abalone species in North America, occurs from Alaska, United States to Central Baja California, Mexico. The species has been observed in intertidal and subtidal habitats from0 to 40 m depth. The best available data indicate that pinto abalone abundance has declined in many areas throughout the species /C213 range due to fisheries harvest. Subsistence and personal use fisheries in Alaska and a commercial fishery in Mexico persist. Preliminary data from 2008 to 2016 indicate signs of recovery for some pinto abalone populations along the British Columbiacoast due to multiple contributing factors including a reduction in illegal harvest, natural recovery following fishery closure, and low predation pressure. By contrast, pinto abalone populations at the San Juan Islands in Washington are experiencing recruitment failure and continuing to decline, despite closure of the fisheries and no evidence of poaching. Throughout theremainder of the species /C213range, trends are less clear, due to the lack of regular, long-term monitoring surveys for pinto abalone. The limited data from surveys and/or opportunistic sightings indicate that pinto abalone populations are small, patchily