Priority Species: Atlantic Herring
Scientific name: Clupea harengus
Herring, Atlantic herring (Clupea harengus), swimming young herring
Herring caught by weir
Photo: blickwinkel / Alamy Stock, Herring
Photo: Colleen Turlo, Sorting weir-caught fish from the Bay of Fundy
DFO Stock Status: Cautious Zone (3/4 Stocks); Critical Zone (1/4 stocks)
COSEWIC Status: No COSEWIC assessment
Dive deeper into stock-specific status details.
Atlantic herring are an indicator species 1, which makes low population levels a serious concern, since there has been a decline in population size in recent years. Fisheries continue to target spawning populations, harvesting herring roe for export. While a population recovery plan is in place, it is not having the desired outcome, despite a quota reduction in 2017 for the Southwest Nova Scotia management area. Mackerel bycatch is a concern in herring fisheries.
For the 4VWX herring stock, there is a lack of science-based reference points, including estimates of fishing mortality 2. No current analytical model for stock assessment exists, and there is a continued unregulated fishery for herring as bait. Herring is an important forage species and the current quota setting does not account for ecosystem needs.
Population: An ecosystem-based rebuilding plan and a restriction on the targeted fishery for herring roe are needed. Our focus has been, and will continue to be, on the 4VWX fishery and Bay of Fundy spawning component. Rebuilding should also include discussions with the U.S. fisheries assessment and management, given herring migration patterns in the Gulf of Maine.
SeaChoice will remain engaged on management advisory committees, and will advocate more broadly in Canada for ecosystem-based fisheries management and mandatory reporting for bait fisheries.
Bycatch: Improve monitoring of fisheries for small pelagics.
Habitat: N/A
Gear: Where possible, low impact gear should be used, including weirs.
Monitoring: A new stock assessment is needed, which should include an estimate for an upper stock reference point, and an estimate of fishing mortality and ecosystem considerations. The following stock assessments for herring were released in 2018: 4T-4Vn in May and 4R in July. We are still expecting a new stock assessment for 4VWX.
Markets: N/A
Related SeaChoice MSC submissions can be found here
Making Forage Fish Count – EAC
“Sustainable” Certified Herring: A Long Swim Ahead to True Sustainability – EAC
Common/Market Name
Atlantic Herring
Distribution
Gulf of St. Lawrence, Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, Bay of Fundy
Harvest Method
Gear Types: purse seine, gillnet, weir
Management Agency
Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO): Maritimes Region, Newfoundland and Labrador Region, Gulf Region
Market Distribution
Bait for Canadian lobster fishery. Canning operations for human consumption. Increasing export to Asian markets (roe). Volumes unknown.
