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Pacific Herring (Clupea pallasii)

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Species overview

Physical description

Illustration of a pale blue Pacific Herring. Refer to physical description.
Illustration of a Pacific Herring (Clupea pallasii)

Pacific Herring is a coastal forage fish species. It schools for protection from predators. It is dark blue to olive on its back, and silver on its sides and belly, which makes it hard to see from above and below. It has a long body with a deeply forked tail.

Distribution

Pacific Herring is a pelagic species, meaning it lives in the open waters of the ocean. It is found inshore and offshore in the North Pacific Ocean. In northeastern Pacific waters, Pacific Herring ranges from Baja California to the Beaufort Sea in Alaska.

Pacific Herring in British Columbia is managed based on 5 major stock management areas:

Life cycle

Pacific Herring matures between 3 to 5 years old. Age of maturity tends to increase with latitude. British Columbia Pacific Herring return to many of the same locations to spawn each spring. Adult males and females migrate from the open ocean to sheltered bays around November or December. In the far north of its range, these dates may be somewhat later.

Conditions that trigger spawning are not clear. Preferred spawning locations are sheltered bays and estuaries, commonly on eelgrass or other submerged vegetation. A single female may produce as many as 20,000 eggs in one spawn, but the juvenile survival rate is only about 1 adult per 10,000 eggs. This is due to high predation by numerous other species.

Fishery history

The commercial Pacific Herring fishery started in British Columbia in the 19th century for the local food market. It quickly expanded into a dry salt fishery for Asia. In 1937, a reduction fishery was also established to produce fish meal and fish oil.

After the collapse of Pacific Sardine in the late 1940s, Pacific Herring became the major fishery off Canada's Pacific coast. Catches steadily increased to over 200,000 tonnes (t) in the early 1960s, which was unsustainable. By 1965, most of the older fish had been removed. As a result, the commercial fishery collapsed in 1967 and was closed coast-wide from 1968 to 1971 to rebuild the stock.

Following the closure, a series of above-average year-classes in the early 1970s quickly rebuilt the stocks. Many new spawners were observed reproducing at several new spawning sites. The fishery was re-opened in 1973. In 1983, quotas were introduced to regulate catch. In 1985, herring spawners began to return to former historical spawning sites, and commercial fishing thresholds or cut-off levels were added in 1986.

Today, there are several Pacific Herring fisheries in British Columbia. First Nations fish for whole herring, herring roe, and herring eggs for food, social, and ceremonial (FSC) purposes. Whole herring are fished by:

Pacific Herring eggs are collected as spawn on seaweed, such as kelp or on tree boughs placed in spawning locations. Indigenous harvest of Pacific Herring for FSC purposes may occur coast-wide where authorized by a communal licence. In addition, treaty and Aboriginal commercial fisheries may occur in some specific management regions.

Commercial fishing opportunities consist of 4 directed fisheries:

Of the 4 commercial Pacific Herring fisheries, roe herring is the most significant. The fisheries take place as herring move into shallow inland waters to spawn from late February to mid-April. Nearly all of British Columbia’s herring products (including spawn-on-kelp) are sold to Japan, China, and the US. Japan is the dominant market, having imported about 65% of British Columbia’s herring products’ export value from 2017-2021.

There is also a small recreational fishery for Pacific Herring. Catch is estimated to be very low.

Annual share of Pacific Herring landed value from 2011 to 2023
Bar graph showing annual share of Pacific Herring landed value from 2011 to 2023.

To convert from short tons to pounds, multiply by 2000.

Text version
Annual share of Pacific Herring landed value from 2011 to 2023
Year Food and bait Special use Spawn on kelp Gillnet Seine Total landed value (2023$)
2013 4,401 593 77 7,925 7,542 10,385,399
2014 8,186 633 230 8,154 8,375 14,934,319
2015 5,542 540 146 5,200 10,781 14,174,068
2016 9,914 781 227 8,282 9,446 20,581,757
2017 7,176 538 310 11,707 10,820 23,184,688
2018 2,658 321 189 11,536 3,429 17,497,733
2019 4,436 660 217 8,374 7,178 18,361,679
2020 2,789 571 57 7,072 2,019 9,900,207
2021 3,082 468 176 8,297 2,996 9,419,197
2022 541 436 0 3,407 820 1,924,725
2023 933 664 18 2,889 2,321 3,727,577

Ecosystem context

Pacific Herring plays a critical role in the ecosystem by supporting numerous economically, ecologically, and culturally significant species. These species include:

Pacific Herring can be particularly vulnerable to certain types of predators that forage on or near the sea floor during daylight hours. They can also be vulnerable to predation by pelagic fish in nearshore feeding areas. Common predators include:

While some predation of Pacific Herring has increased over time, many others have decreased due to long-term shifts in abundance, schooling and migratory behaviours.

Science advice and research

Science advice and research for Pacific Herring

Integrated Fisheries Management Plan

Integrated Fisheries Management Plan for Pacific Herring

Sources

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