Forage fish and near - shore habitat associations

Pacific herring (Clupea pallasi) has been identified as a critical species for North Pacific marine ecosystems and historically has been a commercially important species. In order to improve understanding of this key species, datasets which describe herring spawn activities were integrated with known habitat information and analyzed to determine which habitat has been critical for herring survival and recruitment. Investigators coupled herring spawn observation data to Environmental Senstivity Index (ESI), Bioband, and localized ocean depth information available for Kamishak Bay, Alaska to look for relationships between habitat characteristics and observed herring spawn events. A standard use-availability resource selection analysis (Manly et al. 2002) was used to identify habitats typically selected by herring for spawning. The final resource selection function (RSF) indicated herring have selected shoreline segments for spawning that have shallow ocean depths, and that herring prefer to spawn along shoreline that have certain ESI and Bioband (Shorezone) habitat classifications. The final RSF was used to predict the relative probability of habitat being selected by herring for spawning based upon the shoreline ocean depth and habitat characteristics. The resulting RSF allowed investigators to produce a series of spatial datasets and maps that can be used by resource managers and scientists to better understand what factors describe ideal herring spawning habitat and plan for future management/policy decisions in Kamishak Bay. Source data and predictive maps produced from this project have been integrated into the emerging Prince William Sound Science Center Headwaters to Ocean (H2O) framework. H2O allows visual and granular access to source data and analytical products through the project web site (http://dev.axiomalaska.com/herringhabitat/).