6,170 tons remain on this year’s quota and spawning is increasing rapidly. The herring fleet is in a race against nature. (Brielle Schaeffer/KCAW photo)
Sitka Sound Sac Roe Herring – UPDATE 2:50 PM 3-23-16
The Alaska Department of Fish & Game briefly closed the fishery at 2:30 p.m., but will re-open the existing area at 2:55 p.m until further notice.
ADF&G will open another fishery at 5 p.m. in Salisbury Sound, including the waters of St. John Baptist Bay and Sukoi Inlet. The fishery will be south of the latitude of Scraggy Point and north of High Water Island. Neva Strait is closed.
Photo by KCAW’s Brielle Schaeffer.
Sitka Sound Sac Roe Herring – UPDATE 11:30 AM 3-23-16
The Alaska Department of Fish & Game announced the herring fishery would open today at 1:30 p.m. across a broad range: northern Sitka Sound, Krestof Sound, Nakwasina Passage, Promisla Bay and Katlian Bay. 6,170 tons remain on this year’s quota and spawning is increasing rapidly.
The northern boundary is 57° 15.05′ and the southern boundary is 57° 08.30.’
Dave Gordon, area management biologist with ADF&G, expects the opening to be a long one. He added that a test set this morning produced less than ideal herring – weighing 101 grams on average with 8% mature roe. Gordon said the opening would continue, but that if returns weren’t good, could be shut down.
As of this morning, ADF&G mapped 15.6 nautical miles of nautical spawn, a lot of it in Hayward Strait. This is double the miles mapped yesterday. There is no spawn in Salisbury Sound and the area will be considered for future openings.
