Acoustically derived indicators of demersal and forage species productivity in the Strait of Georgia, and their link to the survival of juvenile salmon – Year two

With a rich acoustic dataset available in the Strait of Georgia (SoG), we propose this research to develop a series of acoustic indicators of productivity for forage (e.g. Pacific herring, mesopelagic fish, euphausiids, zooplankton and ichthyoplankton) and semi-demersal (e.g. Pacific hake and walleye pollock) species within the SoG by using robust multi-frequency techniques. Along with existing time-series of forage species catch from trawl surveys, the acoustic indicators of productivity will be investigated for potential links to marine survival of juvenile salmon in the SoG. Data and results from this study will be closely integrated with other projects sponsored by the Pacific Salmon Foundation that focus on juvenile salmon survival in the same area, serving the ultimate purpose of increasing our understanding of factors controlling the production of juvenile salmon and restoring economic benefits of Pacific salmon to local communities.

Faculty Supervisor:

John Dower

Student:

Lu Guan

Partner:

Pacific Salmon Foundation

Discipline:

Oceanography

Sector:

Fisheries and wildlife

University:

University of Victoria