Migrations and Activity Levels of Overwintering Atlantic Herring ( Clupea harengus harengus ) along Southwest Newfoundland

• Published in: Journal of the Fisheries Research Board of Canada
• Main Author: Winters, G. H.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Canadian Science Publishing 1977
• Subjects: General Medicine; Newfoundland
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/f77-321; http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/pdf/10.1139/f77-321

Recoveries of tagged Atlantic herring (Clupea harengus harengus) released with abdominally inserted magnetic tags indicated a rapid and random dispersion of tagged fish within the total population of herring along southwest Newfoundland. Recoveries further indicated a general westward movement of herring along southwestern Newfoundland from January to March, also reflected in the spatial distribution of commercial catches during this period. Metabolic rates of these overwintering herring, estimated from changes in body energy from December to March, were more than double the standard level, suggesting a high degree of activity, possibly due to avoidance behavior in relation to predatory actions by cod overwintering in the same area. Key words: tagging, movements, predation, metabolic levels