Petition to List Lynn Canal Pacific Herring under the Endangered ...

Cascade Point and adjacent areas of Berners Bay are within primary spawning grounds
for the depressed Lynn Canal herring stock. Development of a marine facility here may
have a negative impact on this herring resource. Vessel traffic, increased access,
transient lighting, turbidity changes, the presence of hydrocarbons in the water and the
potential for oil and/or gas spills are all concerns. Additionally, since spawning herring
are believed to target inter tidal and sub tidal kelp to deposit eggs, reduced kelp
abundance or variety would directly affect spawning success. Department records of the
area since 1971 document herring spawn between Sawmill Cove and the Berners Bay
flats in most years with few exceptions. The consistent herring spawn along this
shoreline for the last 20 years is indicative of its importance to this stock. Continued
encroachment on Lynn Canal shoreline that has historically been used for herring
spawning may potentially have cumulative effect leading to the total collapse of the
herring resource in this area. This could reduce forage for large predators such as
salmon, sea lions, whales, and seals that inhabit Lynn Canal, with unknown
ramifications.
(ADFG 2004). The decline in spawning habitat was predicted by USFWS and NMFS personnel
at least as far back as 1980.
A large portion of the coastline in the vicinity of the Cowee – Davis Management Area is
herring spawning habitat. We believe that it is vitally necessary to protect such habitat in
order to manage the herring resource. At this time, the best method we have for
determining what is herring spawning habitat is by observing the frequency of spawning
use. This indicates a preference for a particular are by the herring. Habitat alteration and
man-induced disturbances in frequently used spawning areas can adversely impact future
utilization. This appears to have occurred in Auke Bay where once herring used to spawn
throughout the area (Figure 10) and now utilize just a very limited section near Auke
Cape (Figure 11). Evidence does not exist to show that these displaced fish spawn in
new areas. In addition, when spawning does take place on unsuitable artificial substrate
such as boat hulls and petroleum saturated objects, significant egg mortality can result
thus adversely affecting annual population recruitment.
In the context of determining habitat value based upon frequency of utilization, the Lynn
Canal coastline from Auke Bay to Point St. Mary (Berners Bay) is the single most
important stretch of spawning habitat to the Lynn Canal/Auke Bay herring stock. This
particular area receives the most concentrated herring spawning activity in Lynn Canal
(Figure 11). To date, the spawning area locations charted by Skud in Figure 10 are still
applicable, with the exception of Auke Bay as previously noted (D. Ingledue, ADF&G,
pers. comm., 1980). The Lynn Canal/Auke Bay herring stock is a discrete population
distinguishable by their concentration for overwintering in Auke Bay and Fritz Cove
(Carlson 1980). The location of this wintering are probably accounts, in part, for the
geographic proximity of the observed major spawning grounds. We believe that the
described spawning are will thus continue to be utilized as spawning habitat and that this
will therefore require protection of certain coastal areas.
(USFWS-NMFS 1980: 6-7)(emphasis added).
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