Leon the one-eyed Rockfish

Leon is a yelloweye rockfish believed to be about 60 years old. He has been a resident at the Shaw Centre for the Salish Sea since we opened in 2009.

Aquarium staff affectionately refer to Leon as the “grumpy old man” of the Centre’s Sandy Bottom habitat. He is bonded with a tiger rockfish we call Tony. Bonds between different species of rockfish have been documented in the wild, too! Leon has a fondness for eating squid and prawns.

In late summer 2023, Leon scuffed his left eye and caused trauma to the cornea and the deeper tissue layers. He was moved to an on-site hospital habitat where he was visited by our talented veterinarian, Dr Chou,  to assess his injury. We tried to save Leon’s eye by bathing him in medicated water every day. Unfortunately, the damage was too severe and the decision was made to remove his eyeball in order to maintain his good quality of life.

The Centre’s animal care room was transformed into a surgery suite and Leon was carefully put under anesthetic by our team’s Registered Veterinary Technician, Kit Thornton. This was done by placing him into a bath with dissolved anesthetic powder. Once asleep, he was placed on a soft foam block and prepped for surgery. A tube delivering anesthetic water was placed in his mouth to flow over his gills, a nerve block injection was placed around his eye socket and his body was periodically sprayed down with seawater to keep him wet. Vital signs were monitored throughout the surgery and recovery period.

Dr. Chou meticulously dissected Leon’s damaged eyeball out of the socket and ensured the blood vessels were tied off to prevent bleeding. The empty socket was packed with a powder that turns to a liquid bandage in contact with water. Leon received additional pain medicine injected into his muscle tissue to keep him comfortable. He was returned to his hospital tank and supported by the animal care team as he recovered from the anesthetic.

Over the next week, Leon received daily pain medication and medicated baths to prevent infection of the eye socket. However, he was reluctant to eat. Being in an unfamiliar habitat can be stressful to fish, so the animal care team decided to return him to his home habitat in the hopes that it would help his appetite. Success! After an hour of being home, he accepted squid chunks. The team was elated as getting fish to eat after surgery can be difficult. This was a huge win!

Leon has continued to demonstrate the remarkable healing abilities and resilience of fish and has quickly adapted to life with one eye. He is a staff and visitor favourite, especially during, but not limited to our A-scare-ium Halloween spook-tacular event where his new look fits perfectly with the theme!

Rockfish Conservation

Rockfish are long-lived, colourful fish found in and around the Salish Sea. Some, like the yelloweye rockfish , can live well over 100 years! But rockfish like Leon grow slowly and their capacity to produce offspring increases with age, so if too many are caught, or if they are caught before they reach these higher capacities, their numbers drop quickly.

Why Do Rockfish Need Our Help?

Unfortunately, rockfish in the Salish Sea are at low numbers and face several challenges for reaching healthy populations. While we try to ensure we are not overfishing, catching/removing any older females from BC waters means lower reproduction rates. Another challenge is that because they live deep underwater, rockfish often do not survive catch and release.  Being pulled quickly to the surface causes their eyes to bulge and their swim bladder—a balloon-like organ that helps them float—to swell up, making it very difficult for them to swim back down. So even rockfish that are caught accidentally will likely die unless they're carefully lowered to deep water using a special tool.

How Are We Protecting Rockfish?

●        Creating Rockfish Conservation Areas (RCAs): Special zones where fishing is strictly limited or not allowed, giving rockfish a safe place to live and grow old. There are over 160 RCAs in British Columbia, including areas near Sidney and Victoria.

●        Descending Devices: Tools that help rockfish return safely to deep water if they're caught by accident.

What Can You Do to Help?

●        Learn and Share: Talk to your family and friends about rockfish and why they need our help.

●        Choose Sustainable Seafood: Yelloweye rockfish is sometimes called "red snapper" on menus. If you're unsure, ask! Programs like Ocean Wise or Seafood Watch can help you make informed choices.

●        Fish Responsibly: If you go fishing, follow the rules and use tools like descending devices to help rockfish survive if they're caught accidentally.

●        Respect RCAs: Know where Rockfish Conservation Areas are located and keep out to protect these fish.

By learning more about these amazing fish and helping to protect their homes, we can all do our part to help rockfish thrive!