Observation: A large school of Pacific herring (Clupea pallasii) was observed at Henderson Point in the Saanich Inlet. The school was at least 1000 strong. Observation made at 4:00PM. - Ricky Belanger, Victoria, B.C.
LEO BC Coordinator comment: According to Hay et al. (1989, 2015), the east shoreline of Saanich Inlet is a known area for Pacific herring spawning (Figure 3), which varies considerably from year to year (Figure 4). Observations such as this one are valuable for understanding the changing distribution and abundance of Pacific herring and other marine life. -Tom Okey, Ocean Integrity Research and the University of Victoria.
Resources:
Pacific herring by DFO
Pacific herring on Fishbase
Pacific herring on Wikipedia
Pacific herring by CRD
References:
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 update).
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Figure 1. Ball of Pacific herring (Clupea pallasii)(Photo: Ricky Belanger).
Figure 2. School of Pacific herring (Clupea pallasii)(Photo: Ricky Belanger).
Figure 3. Spawning areas along the east shoreline of Saanich Inlet.
Figure 4. Spring spawning of Pacific herring (Clupea pallasii) along the east shoreline of Saanich Inlet (Hay et al. 2015).
