Large school of post-larval California anchovy (Engraulis mordax)

Observation: Large school of post-larval anchovy in "boat basin" bay, Valdes Island. A sample of the school was obtained and judged to be anchovy by the Observer. - Ramona de Graaf, Sea Watch Society, Canada.

Comment by LEO BC coordinator, Tom Okey: The California anchovy (Engraulis mordax) becomes abundant in the Northeast Pacific during the Eastern Pacific Cool Phase of the El Niño Southern Oscillation (Chavez et al 2003). It is thus not so surprising that there are indicators of it increasing during this tail end of the anomalously warm water period characterized by "The Blob" of warm water in the North Pacific. This observation of a large school of post-larval E. mordax off ov Valdes island is an indicator of a breeding and increasing population in Canada's Pacific.

The California anchovy is a very important forage fish in the California Current that supports a broad variety of higher trophic level species, and indeed indicates a shift to a different, possibly more productive coastal oceanographic regime. An examination of shifts in oceanography and Plankton communities would be valuable and understanding this recent emergence of California anchovy in Canada specific marine ecosystems. -Tom Okey, Ocean Integrity Research and the University of Victoria.

Resources:

California Anchovy on Wikipedia

Northern Anchovy on California Fish and Game

References:

Chavez, F.P., Ryan, J., Lluch-Cota, S.E. and Ñiquen, M., 2003. From anchovies to sardines and back: Multidecadal change in the Pacific Ocean. Science, 299(5604), pp.217-221.