Forage fish sampling is starting back up again in May!
Forage Fish Sampling – Spring/Summer 2024
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Our Projects
Forage Fish Symposium
The forage fish team has been busy planning the Coastal Forage Fish Network Symposium. Hosted on Zoom, this event brings together researchers, experts and community citizen science volunteers to share research highlights from across Vancouver Island and beyond.
Eelgrass Expansion in Baynes Sound
This summer, Project Watershed staff and volunteers will be getting their feet wet to increase habitat connectivity in Baynes Sound. As part of our multi-year Aquatic Ecosystems Restoration Fund project, we will be conducting an eelgrass transplant off the coast of Gartley Point near Royston.
Project Watershed receives $1.4 million to support forage fish research!
Project Watershed is very excited to announce the award of $1.4 million dollars of funding from the BC Salmon Restoration and Innovation Fund to support our forage fish research, monitoring and restoration!
Winter works at Kus-kus-sum
Project work at Kus-kus-sum isn’t taking a holiday break. In early January, you may have seen some large machines near the wall – we got some excited phone calls about this! However, they were not there to start removing the wall, they were there to take important soil cores to analyse a patch of soil near the wall.
Wanted: Herring Observations
As you may know, Project Watershed has been researching forage fish and their habitats for many years now. To date our work has focused on beach spawning forage fish, specifically Pacific sand lance and surf smelt.
Pacific Sand Lance Day Success
December 8th was the first annual Pacific Sand Lance Day!
These skinny forage fish are understudied and important to our coastal ecosystem. Sand lance have over 100 known predators, and are particularly important to nesting sea birds. This eclectic fish buries into sandy sea beds, hibernates all winter, and spawns on beaches!
The Spawn is On!
Pacific sandlance eggs ~ Aaron SchmidtBeach survery ~ Tom GrimmerSand sample under microscope ~ Aaron Schmidt Our winter Pacific sand lance season was kicked off with eggs being found on Cortes Island on November 6! Later in the month eggs were found at Shingle Spit...
Planting Success at Kus-kus-sum Fall/Winter 2023
A huge thank you to all our industrious volunteers and supporters who came out to assist with our fall planting at Kus-kus-sum!
Glen Urquhart Enhancement Successes and Challenges 2023/2024
It has been a productive year at Glen Urquhart. There is lots more to do but we are already seeing the fruits of our labour.
Going Forage Fishing, Winter 2023/2024
The weather is looking like fall and with the brief skiff of snow recently Project Watershed staff are beginning to look to the winter forage fish season.
Forage Fish Lecture in Tofino
Project Watershed’s Forage Fish team is coming to Tofino to share our research. Join us for a lecture on the importance of forage fish, their biology, ecology, and our west coast project plans to map this ecologically important habitat.