A Successful First Herring Spawn Monitoring Season

And that’s a wrap!

Our first ever herring spawn monitoring program has concluded for the season. Thank you to all volunteers who have surveyed over the last seven weeks. We hope to see you next herring season!

Pacific herring (Clupea pallasii) or wa’ne’ in Kwak’wala, are a forage fish – small fish that play a huge role in the Pacific marine food web. They are a key food source for Chinook and coho salmon, as well as several marine birds and mammals. For thousands of years, Pacific herring have been integral to the culture and society of many coastal Indigenous peoples. Each year from late February to early April, their eggs wash up on beaches throughout the Comox Valley, attracting birders and wildlife watchers.

To better understand this spawn activity, we launched a monitoring program inspired by the successful “Search for Slhawt” initiative from the Átl’ka7tsem/Howe Sound Marine Stewardship Initiative. We collect data at three local sites—Little River Road, Kye Bay, and Point Holmes—to identify when spawning begins and peaks, and to track how this timing changes over time.

2026 Herring Spawn Survey Highlights: 

• Talk about starting off with a bang – 50 surveys completed between February 17th and March 31st!
• Eggs recorded on 40 of 50 surveys
• 16 community science volunteers and 2 staff members
• 90 volunteer hours throughout the season
• Busiest week: March 9th to 15th

First Observations:

• March 3rd – Eggs were spotted in the wrack line at Point Holmes, and that classic, distinct bright blue-green water (aka milt) was seen at Kye Bay.
• March 7th – Eggs at Little River Road

Spawn was found on the following substrates:

• sand, gravel, and cobbles, sometimes in small depressions or pools
• seaweeds including sugar kelp, ulva (sea lettuce), fucus (commonly called rockweed), and invasive seaweed Sargassum or wireweed
• eelgrass
• driftwood, and organic debris near the high tide line

Another Way to Contribute:

We invite community members to share photos of herring eggs or milt through our Pacific Herring Spawn and Nurseries iNaturalist project—thank you to everyone who has contributed.

These observations, combined with surveys, help build a strong local dataset, and historical photos are welcome. Instructions to participate can be found here.