International Pacific Halibut Commission International Pacific Halibut Commission The International Pacific Halibut Commission (IPHC) is an International Fisheries Organization, having Canada and the United States as its members, responsible for the management of stocks of Pacific halibut or "Hippoglossus stenolepis" within the Pacific waters of its member states. It was founded in 1923 by an international treaty. The original treaty has been revised three times (1953,1976,1979). The 1979 amendment clarified the role of the IPHC in the management of the fishery through the North Pacific Halibut Act of 1982. It has carried out many activities including the use of chartered commercial fishing vessels to
Demersal fish and invertebrates that pass overhead. Some species have a worm-shaped lure growing out of the floor of the mouth, which they wiggle to attract prey. Stargazers are venomous and can deliver electric shocks. They have been called "the meanest things in creation." Other examples of coastal demersal fish are cod, plaice, monkfish and sole. Deep water demersal fish occupy the benthic regions beyond the continental margins. On the continental slope, demersal fishes are common. They are more diverse than coastal demersal fish, since there is more habitat diversity. Further out are the abyssal plains. These flat, featureless regions occupy about