DESCRIPTION
This study targets nearshore habitat use of two species of beach-spawning forage fish in Hood Canal, WA: Surf Smelt (Hypomesus pretiosus), and Pacific Sand Lance (Ammodytes hexapterus). While these fish play an important role in food webs supporting many significant species including Pacific salmon (Oncorhynchus spp.), sea birds, and marine mammals, relatively little is understood about their basic ecology, particularly related to nearshore habitats. This is largely due to their patchy distribution in space and time. Sea level rise and shoreline development pose threats to nearshore habitat availability for these beach-spawning fish, thus knowing when, where, and how they use nearshore habitats is critical to conserving these species. This project will provide data that will directly improve conservation planning for forage fish and nearshore ecosystems in Hood Canal. This work will
contribute to our understanding of the factors driving recently observed food web shifts in Hood Canal and will provide data useful for shoreline management plans and policies related to shoreline development permits. Final products of this project will include a technical report summarizing our findings, new data on spatiotemporal use of Hood Canal nearshore habitats by forage fish, and updated mapping of forage fish habitats. Our data will be merged into a regional assessment of the potential effects of sea level rise on beach-spawning forage fish and updated shoreline habitat protection plan
Over the past two years of this grant period we conducted a volunteer led forage fish (Pacific sand lance and surf smelt) spawning survey program once per month in the Hood Canal basin of Puget Sound. This effort was part of a larger regional effort to collect data relevant to the protection and conservation of these species. Our surveys utilized Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) trained volunteers and interns to conduct forage fish sampling surveys at 21 locations throughout Hood Canal. All trained volunteers followed standard forage fish sampling protocols developed by the WDFW for forage fish beach sampling and sample lab analysis.
Monthly sampling involved HCSEG staff setting up a volunteer schedule dependent on the tide predictions for that month. Volunteers then sampled each location at or below the +7’ MLLW Seattle equivalent tidal window to ensure beach sediment where spawning occurs was exposed. Sampling involved a visual inspection of beach sediments and collection of a beach sediment sample. Upon arrival volunteers filled out a WDFW forage fish sampling datasheet which included parameters such as, beach sediment size, upland condition, current tidal elevation, amount of shading, length and width of potential spawning substrate, and the presence of any visible forage fish eggs. In addition, five geo-located pictures were taken of the sampling location. Once samples were gathered they were then winnowed down to the finest sediment using the “vortex bowl” method. After winnowing, the samples were then placed under a microscope where volunteers painstakingly identified, sorted, and counted any forage fish eggs present in the sample. When a sample was completed the eggs were separated into a separate container and paired with the original sample. Both the sediment sample and eggs were preserved using Stockard’s solution. The sediment sample was retained in order to allow for QA/QC of samples by WDFW staff if they deemed necessary. Volunteers recorded all data on a WDFW forage fish analysis datasheet.
Samples and data were then shared with WDFW forage fish ecology project leads to be added to their forage fish spawning database.
Landscape Scale Analysis
