Better policies could net more fish for Indigenous and coastal communities

Better policies could net more fish for Indigenous and coastal communities

Indigenous and coastal communities in Canada are increasingly finding that the ocean and marine resources are off limits, new research suggests.

Photo: Richard Sparrow

With more boat traffic, fewer fish, more conservation activities, and commercial licenses going to corporations, it is becoming harder for Indigenous and coastal communities to access the fish and areas of the ocean they need for food, jobs, and cultural practices. This is negatively impacting coastal communities across the Pacific, Atlantic, and Arctic coasts of Canada, who believe not enough is being done to address the issue.

These were the sentiments expressed at a meeting hosted at UBC in June 2017 that brought together Indigenous fishers, small-scale fisheries representatives, non-governmental organizations, and university researchers.

Led by researchers Nathan Bennett, of UBC, and Megan Bailey, of Dalhousie University, the group recently published a paper that documents the plight of coastal communities in Canada. They say that access for coastal and Indigenous communities should be a priority consideration in all policies and decision-making processes related to fisheries and the ocean in Canada.

Richard Sparrow, project manager of natural resources with the First Nations Fisheries Council, who is Musqueam:
“The Supreme Court of Canada ruled that a First Nation has the priority right to fish second only to conservation. Yet when I am out on the Fraser River and see a large tanker coming my way, I have to stop fishing and move out of the way. Competition over space and fish is becoming more difficult with declining salmon stocks and increased pressures of shipping.”

Nathan Bennett, postdoctoral fellow at UBC’s Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries:
“Vibrant coastal communities are an important part of the Canadian economy but when the ability to access and benefit from marine resources is taken away, this has a big impact on people in these communities. Concrete actions are needed now to reverse the current trend and ensure that coastal and Indigenous communities thrive in the future.”

Megan Bailey, an assistant professor of marine affairs at Dalhousie University:
“We have to think about what kind of future we want as it relates to the ocean. Do we want the ocean to remain an important part of our culture and economy, and do we want to ensure that fish continues to land on our dinner plates? If so, access, both in the present and inter-generationally, needs to be a priority.”

This project is part of the OceanCanada Partnership, which was made possible through a Partnership Grant from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) of Canada.

 

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Seahorse exploitation and trade in Viet Nam

Seahorse exploitation and trade in Viet Nam looks at the difficulties that Viet Nam experienced as they tried to implement Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) required export controls for seahorses, which eventually resulted in an export trade suspension in 2013.

Hippocampus spinosissimus

Project Seahorse researchers worked to address gaps in knowledge and capacity, as well as gathering information on the biology, fisheries, aquaculture, and trade of seahorses in Viet Nam, conducting 146 interviews in eight provinces. The researchers found several areas of concern related to the trade in seahorses, concluding that the implementation of “CITES Appendix II listings requires attention to fisheries management, ensuring that wild populations are not overexploited. Such attention is central to security of both national marine resources and biodiversity. In addressing concerns for seahorses, countries can do much for marine wildlife in general, particularly if they establish marine protected areas as part of their fisheries and marine management.”

This report is part of the Fisheries Centre Research Report series.

 

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Bowhead whales come to Cumberland Sound in Nunavut to exfoliate

Aerial drone footage of bowhead whales in Canada’s Arctic has revealed that the large mammals moult and use rocks to rub off dead skin.

The footage provides one answer to the mystery of why whales return to Cumberland Sound, Nunavut, every summer, and helps explain some unusual behaviour that has been noted historically by Inuit and commercial whalers living and working in the area.

“This was an incidental observation,” said Sarah Fortune, a PhD student at UBC’s Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries and lead author of a new study based on the findings. “We were there to document their prey and feeding behaviour, but we noticed some strange behaviour near the shore.”

Fortune and her colleagues – William Koski, a whale biologist with LGL Limited, and local Inuit hunters and fishers from Pangnirtung – watched from a boat as the whales turned on their sides and waved their flippers and tails in the air. It was clear the whales weren’t there just to feed.

When the researchers sent drones up to record the animals from above, they saw large boulders underwater and realized that the whales were rubbing against rocks to remove dead skin.

“We now know that Cumberland Sound serves as a habitat for feeding and moulting,” said Fortune. “Very little is known about moulting in any of the large whale species.”

The warmer coastal waters of summer might help facilitate moulting, Fortune says. Ocean temperatures are expected to rise, and the change could have implications for the timing, duration and energy needed for moulting, as well as the whales’ diets.

As oceans change, relatively large-bodied, fatty Arctic crustaceans known as zooplankton — the preferred prey of bowhead whales — could move to new habitats further north while smaller-bodied, temperate species that are lower in energy are likely to dominate the waters. Scientists don’t know how whales will adapt to the changing environment.

Fortune hopes to conduct further studies to determine whether bowhead whales moult primarily during summer months, and throughout their range.

Bowhead whales are the longest-living marine mammals on the planet, with lifespans up to 200 years.

The study was published today in PLOS ONE.

 

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There’s something in the water

There is an old story about a person who doesn’t want to swim in the ocean because “fish go to the bathroom in there.” That is exactly what the researchers of the Trans-Canada eDNA Biodiversity Project are hoping for.

Working with Department of Fisheries and Oceans scientist Dr. Kristi Miller, UBC’s Dr. Brian Hunt, Dr. Curtis Suttle, and Dr. Steven Hallam, have just completed a mammoth 150 day sampling effort around Canada’s coastline, from Toronto to Victoria. Using the Canada C3 expedition as a platform, the team collected water samples from more than 100 locations along Canada’s coasts to examine for trace amounts of DNA shed by organisms into the surrounding environment.

Pink and Coho salmon DNA was plentiful in the sample from Kutze Inlet, BC

These samples will be specially analysed using next generation genomic sequencing, to detect the presence in Canadian waters of organisms from all walks of life, from viruses to whales. The goal is to build a Pan Canadian biodiversity database that will provide a baseline of species distributions for 2017 against which future changes can be measured. This baseline will help researchers understand the effect of environmental changes, such as ocean warming and pollution, as well as the detection of new invasive species appearing along Canada’s coastlines.

To get a taste of the data a preliminary analysis of fourteen study points has been completed; one at the mouth of the St. Lawrence, five along the Atlantic coast, six in the Arctic, one in Alaska, and three along the BC coast. The results are striking for the level of diversity detail measurable in a simple water sample. Some results are obvious: a great deal of capelin DNA was found in the sample taken in Terra Nova, Newfoundland, while Pink, and Coho salmon DNA was plentiful in the sample from Kutze Inlet, BC – it was taken during the spawning period.

Pacific herring DNA showed up in Pacific – and also Arctic waters.

The amount of Pacific herring DNA found in Haida Gwaii was high, but, surprisingly to this west coast based team, so was the amount found in Bathurst Inlet, Nunavat. “I do research on herring on the BC coast, and had not realized that they occur in the Canadian Arctic,” said Dr. Brian Hunt. “This is a good example of the power of eDNA, which we aim to harness to monitor shifts of warm water species into the Arctic.”

In addition to fish, the 16s DNA primers were also able to detect a host of other marine species including sea stars, narwhals and harp seals in northern Labrador, and salmon sharks near Alaska, as well as non-marine species such as moose, black and brown bears, bald eagle, beaver, and even the Pacific newt.

Dr. Brian Hunt

“The eDNA samples enable us to measure the occurrence of species across many taxonomic groups, all from a single sample,” said Hunt. “It would require a huge logistical effort to collect this type of information using traditional observation methods. This is the power of eDNA – making it possible to measure the diversity of life from a simple water sample. As this approach gains traction and the technology improves, the power and accessibility of eDNA is likely to revolutionize marine research.”

 

 

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Daniel Pauly knighted by the French Government

 

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Shareholders in fishing companies at risk from fisheries over-exploitation: research

 

 

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Researchers investigate the ‘whole enchilada’ in Tasman Sea

Loading equipment onto the <i>RV Investigator</i>. Photo ©Lian Kwong, UBC

Loading equipment onto the RV Investigator.
Photo ©Lian Kwong, UBC

UBC PhD candidate Lian Kwong, and postdoctoral research fellow Dr. Natasha Henschke recently participated in a scientific voyage on board the Australian research vessel Investigator, under the supervision of Professor Evgeny Pakhomov, Principal Investigator and Director of UBC’s Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries. This research voyage, titled “The whole enchilada: from production to predation in Tasman Sea ecosystems,” was led by Chief Scientist, Professor Iain Suthers, and focused on establishing the relationship between open ocean production and coastal fisheries off southeastern Australia.

Over the three-week period, onboard researchers sampled different oceanographic habitats for phytoplankton, zooplankton and larval fish, larval lobster, and small fish. Surveys were also conducted to quantify the birds and cetaceans in the area. Sampling methods included the use of multi-frequency echo sounders, CTD casts, Triaxus tows with an attached laser optical plankton counter, plankton nets and trawls down to 500 and 1000m deep. Several interesting organisms were identified in the deep net trawls, including various anglerfish species such as the ghostly seadevil (Haplophryne mollis), often with a parasitic male attached.

Haplophryne mollis with parasitic male attached. Photo ©Lian Kwong, UBC

Kwong is working Prof. Pakhomov and fellow Principal Investigator Dr. Jason Everett of the University of New South Wales on assessing active carbon transport of mesozooplankton and micronekton in the Tasman Sea.

“The animals that we’ve been sampling undergo the world’s largest migration – from the deep ocean to the surface of the ocean at night to feed,” said Kwong. “In combination with our depth stratified tows, we will also be looking at the acoustic data with Dr. Sven Gastaeur (University of Tasmania). This will help us figure out precisely which animals are migrating in the water column, and how deep they are going.”

Additional research involving pelagic tunicates (salps and pyrosomes), that were opportunistically captured onboard, will be led by Dr. Henschke to supplement her current postdoctoral work with Prof. Pakhomov on Southern Ocean salps.

Pyrosomes. Photo ©Lian Kwong, UBC

“While pyrosomes were not a major focus of this voyage, their mass abundance mirrors recent swarms that were seen off the coast of Oregon and Washington earlier this year,” she said. “It is interesting that these organisms can form such dense swarms, yet we still know so little about their basic ecology, and what causes these swarms. Hopefully we can use this data to link their occurrence to environmental drivers.”

Dr. Brian Hunt, Assistant Professor in UBC’s Institute for Oceans and Fisheries, is also a collaborator on the project, and is focusing on using stable isotopes to understand food web dynamics.

Lian and Natasha working hard at sea. Photo ©Iain Suthers, UNSW.

The voyage was an international collaboration involving ten institutions: University of British Columbia (Canada), Fisheries and Oceans (Canada), University of New South Wales (Australia), University of Tasmania (Australia), Curtin University (Australia), University of Technology Sydney (Australia), University of Auckland (NZ), Auckland Museum (NZ), Taronga Zoo (Australia) and CSIRO (Australia).

This research was supported by a grant of sea time on Investigator from the Marine National Facility. The Marine National Facility is owned and operated by CSIRO on behalf of Australia.

 

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UBC professor wins Volvo Environment Prize

Dr Rashid Sumaila

Dr Rashid Sumaila

The 2017 Volvo Environment Prize has been awarded to Dr. Rashid Sumaila, professor in UBC’s Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries, and School of Public Policy, Director of the Fisheries Economics Research Unit (FERU) and OceanCanada Partnership, for his innovative work in fisheries economics and sustainable governance of ocean resources.

Dr. Sumaila’s research covers all aspects of the future health of the oceans: overfishing, oil spills, plastics pollution, ocean acidification, and climate change. He is an economist who has challenged traditional ways of marine governance and has introduced new ways of thinking, such as protecting the high seas as a “fish bank” for the world.

“This is an amazing, unexpected honour and recognition,” said Dr. Sumaila. “It puts me in the company of truly remarkable scientists, which is very humbling!”

“We are incredibly proud of Professor Sumaila,” said UBC President, Professor Santa Ono. “He is not only one of the most cited scientists, he also has the ability to bring science to life, to get everyone from children to laymen to experts interested in sustainability, climate change and the economy of fisheries, an area which he has pioneered.”

The world’s oceans were once seen as an infinite fisheries supply source, however research undertaken by Dr. Sumaila, and others, showed that overfishing has caused that supply to be severely depleted. “There is clear scientific evidence, supported by reports from fishermen all over the world, that we are currently taking out too much fish. We are overfishing, depleting our resources”, said Dr. Sumaila. “If we were to protect the high seas, we would create areas where the fish can hide and grow. Fish can later seed the economic zones of countries. This will improve not only the marine biodiversity but also economics.” This suggestion of a total ban on fishing in the high seas, which cover more than two thirds of the world’s oceans, was, at first, deemed unrealistic, however the first high seas marine protected area, the Ross Sea in Antarctica, will come into force by December 1, 2017.

In addition, Dr. Sumaila’s application of game theory to fisheries, and his analysis of the nature, amounts and effects of government subsidies on global fisheries, has shown him to be an innovative, interdisciplinary researcher who is willing to address ocean ecology, fisheries economics, and conservation biology. His work is highly regarded by policy makers at the highest levels, resulting in invitations to give talks at the United Nations, the White House, the U.S. Congress, the European Parliament, the African Union, the British House of Lords, and the Canadian Parliament.

The Volvo Environment Prize was founded in 1988 and has become one of the world’s most prestigious environmental prizes. It is awarded annually to people who have made outstanding scientific discoveries within the area of the environment and sustainable development.

Dr. Sumaila will be presented with the prize, which consists of a diploma, a glass sculpture and a cash sum of SEK 1.5 million (approx. $230,000 CAD), at a ceremony in Stockholm on November 29, 2017.

Photo: Tore Marklund

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Brian Hunt joins the Canada C3 cruise for marine DNA project

MV Polar Prince

Dr. Brian Hunt, assistant professor in UBC’s Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries, and Hakai Professor in Oceanography, will be setting sail on the Canada C3 Expedition on October 2nd.

The Canada C3 Expedition, part of Canada’s 150th Anniversary celebrations, is an epic 150-day voyage from Toronto to Victoria, via the Northwest Passage. Divided into 15 legs, the expedition invited a cross-section of Canadians, including scientists, artists, Indigenous Elders, historians, community leaders, youth, and journalists to learn more about Canada’s environment, coastal communities, and to connect Canadians from coast to coast to coast.

Dr. Hunt is one of the principal investigators for the Trans-Canada eDNA Biodiversity Mapping Project, which will use new genomic technology to analyse trace amounts of environmental DNA shed by marine organisms in the surrounding water. Through the use of ultra fine filters and metabarcoding analysis, the research team will collect information about marine organisms in Canadian waters, including viruses, bacteria, zooplankton, invertebrates, fish, and marine mammals.

The research team will compile this information into a Pan Canadian biodiversity database that can then be used to measure the impacts of environmental changes, such as those from climate change (e.g., rising ocean temperatures, changing salinity, and sea ice loss), on marine species.

Dr. Brian Hunt

“The Canada C3 expedition will provide us with a unique opportunity to gather necessary samples and utilize new technologies to learn more about our marine ecosystems, and engage directly with local communities, individuals, and cruise participants from diverse backgrounds in communicating our science,” said Dr. Hunt. “We have the opportunity to build a database that can become an important reference for Canadians’ understanding of the current distribution of species in Canada’s three oceans, against which we can measure future changes.”

Dr. Hunt will be on legs 13 and 14 of the Canada C3 cruise, from Prince Rupert to Bella Bella, and from Bella Bella to Campbell River. Dr. Kristi Miller-Saunders, from the federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans’ Pacific Biological Station and a principal investigator on the eDNA Biodiversity Mapping Project, will be the lead scientist on the final leg of the expedition, from Campbell River to Victoria, BC.

 

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Juvenile Salmon Survival Program gains funding from MITACS and the Tula Foundation

The Juvenile Salmon Survival Program, led by Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries UBC-Hakai Professor in Oceanography, Dr. Brian Hunt, has been awarded a $270,000 Tula Foundation-Mitacs grant in support of ongoing research into the early marine life history of juvenile salmon in British Columbia.

“Salmon are one of the most culturally, ecologically, and economically important fish in British Columbia, however, their stocks have been declining since the 1990’s,” said Dr. Hunt. “This collaborative program is concentrating on juvenile salmon’s first months in the ocean as critical to their survival. We want to resolve how changing ocean conditions and ecosystems are impacting BC’s salmon.”

The Juvenile Salmon Survival Program is a collaboration between the University of British Columbia, Hakai Institute, Simon Fraser University, University of Toronto, Pacific Salmon Foundation, Department of Fisheries and Oceans, and the Heiltsuk Nation. The award will support two postdoctoral fellows, a PhD student and five MSc students as they focus on the role that marine habitat, feeding conditions, pathogen and parasite infections, and migration behaviour play in the survival of juvenile salmon in British Columbia.

 

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