Observation: Within the foot print of the proposed three berth construction, an area of eelgrass was found to have a coating of [Pacific herring] spawn below the high tide area. We walked out away from the Coal Port as far as we dared on a rising tide in a mucky intertidal wearing hip waders. We were in eelgrass beds. - Richard Swanston, Delta, BC, Canada.
LEO Coordinator Comment: Pacific Herring (Clupea pallasii) is an essentially important forage fish in marine ecosystems of the northeast Pacific coastal oceans, with many other higher trophic level species feeding on them. This species is unusually abundant in 2017 leading to a Bumper harvest as herring return to Strait of Georgia in great numbers. the normal areas of Civic Herring spawn in BC are described in Maps of spawning areas of British Columbia herring are available. It would not be surprising if the spawning event of 2017 occurred in areas outside of the existing maps of Herring spawn, given the significance of the 2017 event. - Tom Okey, Ocean Integrity Research and the University of Victoria, Canada.
Consult / Contribution:
Resources:
Herring Spawning Areas of British Columbia
Pacific Herring (Clupea pallasii) fact sheet
Friends of Semiahmoo BaySociety
References:
Hay, D.E., 1985. Reproductive biology of Pacific herring (Clupea harengus pallasi). Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences, 42(S1), pp.s111-s126.
Hay, D.E., P.B. McCarter, R. Kronlund and C. Roy. 1989. Spawning areas of British Columbia herring: a review, geographical analysis and classification. Volumes 1-6. Can. MS Rep. Fish. Aquat. Sci. 2019. (2015 Edition: D. E. Hay and P. B. McCarter 2015).
Pynn, L. 2017. Bumper harvest as herring return to Strait of Georgia in great numbers. Vancouver Sun,
March 2017.
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