Project Information

Title: Using Otolith Chemical Analysis to Determine Larval Drift of PWS Pacific Herring (Clupea Pallasii) 060782

Project Year and Number: 2006: 060782

Other Fiscal Years and Numbers for this Project: 2007: 070782

Principal Investigator (PI): Nate Bickford (University of Alaska Fairbanks)

Managing Agency: ADFG

Assisting Personnel: Sean-Bob Kelly

Research Location: Prince William Sound

Restoration Category: Research

Injured Resources Addressed: Commercial Fishing, Pacific Herring, Subsistence

Abstract: Chemical analyses of herring otoliths can be used to consider the effect the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill continues to have on the recovery of the herring population in PWS. Studying the regional elemental signatures within the core of the herring otolith enables researchers to identify the spawning areas (Objective 1), and the edge of the otolith will identify nursery area (Objective 2). The 3D-PWS model describing larval drift and larval retention in PWS (Norcross et al., 2001a) has never been field-tested. Comparing the two methods for describing larval drift could validate this model as a tool for understanding the impediments to herring recovery in PWS (Objective 3). With these otolith chemical data combined with the 3D-PWS model, fishery managers will have the tools necessary to better predict recruitment and estimate herring spawning habitat recovery.


Proposal: View (462 KB)

Reports:
Annual Report FY06: View (106 KB)
Final Report: View (112 KB)

Publications from this Project: None Available