Our team is headed by Brian Hunt and Evgeny Pakhomov from the Department of Earth Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences, University of British Columbia. We are interested in how closely herring are tied to oceanography and plankton cycles. Physical conditions of temperature and salinity determine the rate of development of eggs and larvae, and with the addition of nutrients, control the development of the plankton blooms that herring are dependent on for growth at all stages of their life cycle. Our research is investigating the oceanographic and environment and phenology (seasonal and other cycles) of plankton blooms experienced by Central Coast herring larvae.
Trial sampling at two sites near Bella Bella in 2012 found that the timing of herring larvae hatching perfectly matched the period of highest zooplankton abundance. In 2013, led by the Hakai Beach Institute, we expanded sampling to 10 sites. Through ongoing bio-oceanographic monitoring of a wide range of spawning locations we aim to develop an understanding of the parameters that drive spawn site selection, how spawn site characteristics effect larval survival and growth, and ultimately to develop environmental proxies that will enable us to assess how spawning conditions have changed historically on the Central Coast.
Bar chart of zooplankton abundance by size class, over the herring spawn and hatching period.
