Soft-Bodied Zooplankton Predators and Competitors of Larval Herring (Clupea harengus pallasi) at Herring Spawning Grounds in British Columbia

1990 ◽  
Vol 47 (3) ◽  
pp. 505-515 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer E. Purcell
Keyword(s):  
British Columbia ◽  
Larval Survival ◽  
Clupea Harengus ◽  
Dietary Overlap ◽  
Spawning Grounds ◽  
Predator Species ◽  
Strait Of Georgia ◽  
Barkley Sound ◽  
Clupea Harengus Pallasi ◽  
Important Predator

The soft-bodied zooplankton predators and the microzooplankton foods of herring larvae were collected at 28 herring spawning grounds in British Columbia in April 1984, when herring larvae (Clupea harengus pallasi) hatched. The same predator species were found throughout coastal B.C., but total densities varied over three orders of magnitude. Barkley Sound had the highest densities, and bays in northern B.C. and the Strait of Georgia had higher densities than open shorelines in both regions. Eight of 18 species of soft-bodied predators contained herring larvae. The hydromedusan Aequorea victoria was the most important predator, and consumed 0.4% of the herring larvae∙d−1 in Fanny Bay, and 12.5, 3.9, and 0%∙d−1 over three consecutive days in Kulleet Bay as larval densities decreased. Herring larvae ate copepod nauplii (84.4%) and other microzooplankton. Densities of these prey varied between 0.8 and 37∙L−1 among 21 locations sampled. Only three species of hydromedusae showed extensive dietary overlap (90–100%) with larval herring. Soft-bodied predators consumed < 1%∙d−1 of the microzooplankton in 17 locations, and could have affected densities in only one of the 21 locations. The ratios of microzooplankton to predator densities varied over 1000-fold, suggesting great differences in the chances for herring larval survival among various locations.

Factors Influencing Development and Survival of Pacific Herring (Clupea harengus pallasi) Eggs and Larvae to Beginning of Exogenous Feeding

1985 ◽  
Vol 42 (S1) ◽  
pp. s56-s68 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. F. Alderdice ◽  
A. S. Hourston
Keyword(s):  
British Columbia ◽  
Salinity Tolerance ◽  
Reproductive Cycle ◽  
Larval Survival ◽  
Colloid Osmotic Pressure ◽  
Clupea Harengus ◽  
Egg Mass ◽  
Pacific Herring ◽  
Clupea Harengus Pallasi ◽  
Upper Boundary

The euryplastic Pacific herring (Clupea harengus pallasi) generally encounters temperatures ranging between 0 and 10 °C throughout its distribution during the maturation and spawning of adults, incubation of eggs, and hatching of larvae. For many Asian stocks these events occur in the lower half of the temperature range; with North American stocks they tend to occur in the upper half of the range. In British Columbia waters, salinities associated with these events (range, optimum) are spawning (2.6–28.7‰, 27–28.7‰), [Formula: see text] fertilization of eggs (4.5–42‰, 12–15‰), and maximum total hatch and hatch of viable larvae (4.5–42‰, 12–17‰). A low/low–high/high interaction between salinity and temperature also influences total hatch, hatch of viable larvae, and salinity tolerance of larvae. In addition, the following implications arise regarding aspects of the Pacific herring reproductive cycle, based on previously published and new data, and on speculative inference. The response of Pacific herring to salinity and temperature appears to have a commanding influence on the reproductive cycle and, thereby, on distribution of the species. Survival of eggs on substrate, related to respiratory activity, appears to be influenced by the transport and perfusion velocity of interstitial water in an egg mass. Such transport may involve perivitelline fluid colloid osmotic pressure; natural convection; the surge associated with wave action, beach slope, and depth; and possibly differences in resistance to convective flow of deoxygenated water from an egg mass based on orientation of the substrate. These relations would be modified by variations in deposition intensity (number of egg layers) and packing density (eggs per unit volume), and both factors may affect survival of occluded eggs in an egg mass differentially, depending on the substrate used. A review of data on salinity tolerance of herring larvae indicates that a variety of dosage-mortality techiques has been used, leading to noncomparable estimates of response. An assessment of upper incipient lethal salinities will require standardization of such techniques. Recent studies show that salinity tolerance of larvae is influenced significantly by salinity–temperature conditions during egg incubation. At usual incubation conditions in British Columbia waters, the upper boundary of larval tolerance is estimated as 27.5–31.7‰ S (72-h LC10). depending on incubation history. The fate of Pacific herring larvae carried into the higher salinities of offshore waters has been controversial. In the Strait of Georgia, British Columbia, substantial offshore dispersion of larvae occurs where surface conditions generally are 27–28.6‰ and 9–10 °C in the early larval period. Although these salinities are near the upper boundary of salinity tolerance, larvae sampled in offshore waters (1981) had an apparent mean age of 15 d and were actively feeding and growing. From rates of disappearance of larvae in the offshore waters (9% wk) and inshore waters (45% wk) we conclude that usual surface salinities and food supply in the open waters of the Strait were not a dominant influence on larval survival. Assuming the larvae remain in the upper 10 m, we suspect their disappearance, at least offshore, to be largely the result of predation.

An Evaluation of Morphometrics and Meristics for Stock Separation of Pacific Herring (Clupea harengus pallasi)

1984 ◽  
Vol 41 (3) ◽  
pp. 414-422 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hans Jürg Meng ◽  
Max Stocker
Keyword(s):  
British Columbia ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Function Analysis ◽  
Clupea Harengus ◽  
Pacific Herring ◽  
Geographic Scale ◽  
Meristic Characters ◽  
Morphometric Characters ◽  
Strait Of Georgia ◽  
Clupea Harengus Pallasi

We conducted an analysis to determine if Pacific herring (Clupea harengus pallasi) stocks occurring in different localities in British Columbia waters could be separated using morphometric and meristic characters. Discriminant function analysis was applied to morphometric and meristic characters taken from food herring samples. Herring found in northern British Columbia waters were detectably different from those found in the Strait of Georgia. We recommend using meristic characters for separation on a broad geographic scale and using "best" morphometric characters for finer resolution within the established broader groups. We defined a set of 12 best morphometric characters for further large-scale studies.

Alternative Harvest Strategies for Pacific Herring (Clupea harengus pallasi)

1988 ◽  
Vol 45 (5) ◽  
pp. 888-897 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. L. Hall ◽  
R. Hilborn ◽  
M. Stocker ◽  
C. J. Walters
Keyword(s):  
Management Strategies ◽  
Clupea Harengus ◽  
Pacific Herring ◽  
Harvest Rate ◽  
Strait Of Georgia ◽  
Clupea Harengus Pallasi ◽  
Current Management Strategy ◽  
Stock Recruitment ◽  
Spawning Biomass ◽  
Constant Escapement

A simulated Pacific herring (Clupea harengus pallasi) population is used to evaluate alternative management strategies of constant escapement versus constant harvest rate for a roe herring fishery. The biological parameters of the model are derived from data on the Strait of Georgia herring stock. The management strategies are evaluated using three criteria: average catch, catch variance, and risk. The constant escapement strategy provides highest average catches, but at the expense of increased catch variance. The harvest rate strategy is favored for its reduced variance in catch and only a slight decrease in mean catch relative to the fixed escapement strategy. The analysis is extended to include the effects of persistent recruitment patterns. Stock–recruitment analysis suggests that recruitment deviations are autocorrelated. Correlated deviations may cause bias in regression estimates of stock–recruitment parameters (overestimation of stock productivity) and increase in variation of spawning stock biomass. The latter effect favors the constant escapement strategy, which fully uses persistent positive recruitment fluctuations. Mean catch is depressed for the harvest rate strategy, since the spawning biomass is less often located in the productive region of the stock–recruitment relationship. The model is used to evaluate the current management strategy for Strait of Georgia herring. The strategy of maintaining a minimum spawning biomass reserve combines the safety of the constant escapement strategy and the catch variance reducing features of the harvest rate strategy.

Environmental Variation and Recruitment of Pacific Herring (Clupea harengus pallasi) in the Strait of Georgia

1985 ◽  
Vol 42 (S1) ◽  
pp. s174-s180 ◽  
Author(s):  
Max Stocker ◽  
Vivian Haist ◽  
David Fournier
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Variables ◽  
River Discharge ◽  
Clupea Harengus ◽  
Pacific Herring ◽  
Strait Of Georgia ◽  
Clupea Harengus Pallasi ◽  
Age Structured ◽  
Age Structured Model ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Spawning Success

We used an age-structured model to estimate recruitment for the Strait of Georgia Pacific herring (Clupea harengus pallasi) population. The model used for herring is a version of the model described in Fournier and Archibald (1982. Can. J. Fish. Aquat. Sci. 39: 1195–1207), modified to include spawn survey information. Three structural assumptions are made to include the spawn data: (1) the form of the relationship between the actual spawn and the observed spawn, (2) the form of the relationship between escapement and actual spawn, and (3) the existence of a Ricker spawn–recruitment relationship, with a multiplicative environmental component. In order to determine which environmental factors had a significant effect on recruitment, we attempted to explain the residual variation from the Ricker curve with the environmental variables using exploratory correlations. Temperature, river discharge, sea level, and sunlight were examined. A multiplicative, environmental-dependent Ricker spawn–recruitment model was used to identify significant environmental variables. The model suggests a significant dome-shaped relationship between temperature and spawning success with an optimal temperature during larval stages resulting in maximum production of recruits. Also, increased spawning success is associated with increased summer river discharge. The significant environmental variables were included in the age-structured model in a stock–environment–recruitment relationship, and all model parameters were reestimated. The overall model fit improved only marginally with the inclusion of environmental variables, as indicated by the objective function value. However, the S–R component of the objective function dropped by 23% when environmental variables were included.

Predation by Medusae on Pacific Herring (Clupea harengus pallasi) Larvae

1982 ◽  
Vol 39 (11) ◽  
pp. 1537-1540 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary Needler Arai ◽  
Douglas E. Hay
Keyword(s):  
British Columbia ◽  
Coastal Waters ◽  
Laboratory Tests ◽  
Clupea Harengus ◽  
Aurelia Aurita ◽  
Pacific Herring ◽  
Aequorea Victoria ◽  
Clupea Harengus Pallasi

In laboratory tests young Pacific herring (Clupea harengus pallasi) larvae were eaten by several species of hydromedusae common in coastal waters off British Columbia, including the previously controversial Sarsia tubulosa and by the scyphomedusa Aurelia aurita. Field collections and observations confirmed that the distributions of medusae and larvae overlap and that some medusae feed on herring larvae in nature. In coastal waters and bays of British Columbia, the hydromedusae Sarsia tubulosa or Aequorea victoria may be most abundant during the time of peak herring larvae abundance.Key words: herring, larvae, Clupea, Sarsia, Aequorea, predation, medusae

A Record of Pacific Herring (Clupea harengus pallasi) Feeding on Juvenile Chinook Salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) in a British Columbia Estuary

1971 ◽  
Vol 28 (12) ◽  
pp. 1921-1921 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jun Ito ◽  
R. R. Parker
Keyword(s):  
British Columbia ◽  
Chinook Salmon ◽  
Oncorhynchus Tshawytscha ◽  
Clupea Harengus ◽  
Pacific Herring ◽  
Predator Prey ◽  
Juvenile Chinook Salmon ◽  
Clupea Harengus Pallasi ◽  
Juvenile Chinook

An occurrence of Pacific herring (Clupea harengus pallasi) predation on juvenile chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) is described. This is the first recorded incidence of this particular predator–prey relation.

Growth and Maturation of Pacific Herring (Clupea harengus pallasi) in the Strait of Georgia

1985 ◽  
Vol 42 (S1) ◽  
pp. s138-s146 ◽  
Author(s):  
V. Haist ◽  
M. Stocker
Keyword(s):  
Surface Temperature ◽  
Sea Surface Temperature ◽  
Clupea Harengus ◽  
Sea Surface ◽  
Pacific Herring ◽  
Juvenile Growth ◽  
Strait Of Georgia ◽  
Surplus Energy ◽  
Clupea Harengus Pallasi ◽  
Stock Biomass

Juvenile growth rate, adult surplus energy, and the maturation schedule for the Strait of Georgia Pacific herring (Clupea harengus pallasi) stock were investigated over the period 1950–81. The variance in weight at age 2 is largely accounted for by juvenile abundance and sea surface temperature, indicating density-dependent juvenile growth moderated by environmental factors. Density and environmental factors have been equally important in moderating juvenile growth. Yearly variation in maturation of 3-yr-old herring is related to their average length; however, in two of the eight years studied the 3-yr-olds matured at considerably smaller sizes. The variance in adult surplus energy (growth plus gonad production) was largely accounted for by body weight, adult biomass, and sea surface temperature. A dome-shaped relationship between surplus energy and biomass was indicated, suggesting that over a broad range of population size, adult surplus energy is not density dependent. The relationship of sea surface temperature to both juvenile growth and adult surplus energy was quadratic with an optimum value. Recruitment biomass has been a relatively larger component than adult production of total stock growth, particularly during the period of high fishing intensity. This resulted in large fluctuations in stock biomass; in recent years, with lower fishing intensity, adult production has been a larger component of stock growth, and the stock biomass has become more stable.

History and present status of fisheries for marine fishes and invertebrates in the Strait of Georgia, British Columbia

1983 ◽  
Vol 40 (7) ◽  
pp. 1095-1119 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. S. Ketchen ◽  
N. Bourne ◽  
T. H. Butler
Keyword(s):  
Clupea Harengus ◽  
Pacific Cod ◽  
Cancer Magister ◽  
Strait Of Georgia ◽  
Merluccius Productus ◽  
Management Measures ◽  
Clupea Harengus Pallasi ◽  
Protothaca Staminea ◽  
Dungeness Crabs ◽  
Parophrys Vetulus

An historical account is given of the development of Strait of Georgia commercial fisheries (other than salmon) from their beginnings in the middle to late 19th century to the 1980s. Where possible, attempts were made to explain past fluctuation in abundance, especially to distinguish natural effects from those of fishing or socioeconomic origin. The review deals with commercial exploitation of herring (Clupea harengus pallasi), dogfish (Squalus acanthias), lingcod (Ophiodon elongatus), Pacific cod (Gadus macrocephalus), English sole (Parophrys vetulus), pollock (Theragra chalcogramma), hake (Merluccius productus), Dungeness crab (Cancer magister), shrimps (Pandalopsis dispar, Pandalus platyceros, P. jordani, P. hypsinotus and P. danae), oyster (Crassostrea gigas), butter clams (Saxidomus giganteus), little neck clams (Protothaca staminea), Manila clams (Tapes phillipinarum), geoduck clams (Panope generosa), and other invertebrates. Lingcod and the various shellfish species are also the object of recreational fisheries. Commercial landings in 1980 totalled 25 575 t with a landed value of over 20 million dollars. Over 57% of the weight landed and 70% of its landed value consisted of herring. Oysters, geoduck clams, Pacific cod, and Dungeness crabs were next in importance. We conclude that the future of the fishery will depend on policy regarding the coexistence of commercial and recreational components, the effectiveness of management measures, and probably on the success of controlling domestic and industrial pollution.

Reproductive Biology of Pacific Herring (Clupea harengus pallasi)

1985 ◽  
Vol 42 (S1) ◽  
pp. s111-s126 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. E. Hay
Keyword(s):  
British Columbia ◽  
Reproductive Biology ◽  
Experimental Work ◽  
Egg Size ◽  
Clupea Harengus ◽  
Pacific Herring ◽  
Geographic Scale ◽  
Clupea Harengus Pallasi ◽  
Egg Number ◽  
Spawning Time

Most British Columbia herring begin sexual maturation in the late summer and become sexually mature in the subsequent March or April. As they mature, most stocks migrate from summer feeding grounds to overwintering areas and then to shallow nearshore spawning areas. Also, newly recruited, sexually maturing fish join the adult spawning stocks, either on the summer or winter grounds. These events occur in an unpredictable environment. Consequently, reproduction in Pacific herring (Clupea harengus pallasi) may be viewed as a biological problem of maintaining synchrony and precision: specifically the synchronous maturation of (1) males and females and (2) the recruit spawners with the adult fish that have spawned in previous years. Biological precision is required to ensure that gametes are released at the correct place at the correct time. Further precision is required to achieve an appropriate balance between egg number and egg size, and then to control the density of eggs deposited on the bottom. The annual temperature regime is a vital regulator of these processes. Generally, the warmer the temperature, or lower the latitude, the earlier the maturation and spawning time. There are some notable exceptions that indicate local adaptation to other environmental cues. Also, experimental work indicates that food supply can affect the maturation rate. Intensities of egg depositions are generally similar among Pacific North American stocks, and indeed for many documented herring spawnings from Asian and European stocks. It has been shown that eggs in the middle of very thick spawns have lower survival so there is a selective advantage for biological mechanisms that ensure more even and lighter egg densities. This paper suggests that egg density in Pacific herring is controlled by a biological feedback mechanism involving milt concentration and hydrographic factors. Earlier spawners tend to be larger and there is a positive relationship between female size and egg size, a tendency consistent with other herring stocks and species. Size-adjusted fecundity, when compared among different regions and years, is strikingly uniform within British Columbia. On a broad geographic scale (California to Alaska), size-specific fecundity declines with latitude. Recent experimental work reveals that total egg number is higher at early stages of maturation and decreases as spawning time approaches. Presumably, this decrease reflects selective resorption of some developing oocytes, and probably occurs in response to available body energy. The duration and geographical variation in spawning time is relevant to questions concerning the evolutionary and taxonomic relationships between Pacific herring and Atlantic herring (Clupea harengus harengus). Other aspects of reproductive biology have important management implications, particularly for (1) predicting recruitment, (2) deriving stock estimates from spawn surveys, and (3) managing fisheries.

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