A good relationship between the variability in measurements of Cape hake Merluccius capensis biomass during winter and summer swept-area research surveys and sea surface temperature off southern Namibia for the years 1983–1990 is presented. The results call into question the hypothesis that hake density is related to biomass and imply that abnormally warm summers could support higher catches, regardless of the state of the stock. A hypothesis that anomalous warm conditions could induce hake to concentrate closer to the sea bed, making them more susceptible to bottom trawling, is presented.