I was rather disappointed by Trite's testimony. I thought he was learning off Brian Riddell.
And I am guessing Trites has not seen Carl Walters work - nor even acknowledged the fact that FN used to take many MMs way before his 1960 benchlines he uses to chide us about our shifting baselines - and doesn't talk about space/time overlaps w seals on inbound adult spawning salmon, or outmigrating juvie salmon - esp at choke points. He also tries to say that seals take diseased fish rather than healthy ones w/o offering any data/science altho he demands that from harvest proponents. I guess he hasn't witnessed the corralling of fish by a team of seals. I guess he also has no experience nor knows that seals can tell sex and selectively eat female spawning salmon - given the choice. But - I guess we now know the speaking notes that the ENGOs will next use, however. I call BS.
I am glad that Ken Pearse spoke to some of those issues.
I am also guessing that anyone reading this thread with info for FOPO on seals would find an ally in Lisa Marie Barron lisamarie.barron@parl.gc.ca
Not a single dissenter in the room.
Amazed me, as I was quite prepared for that.
Loved taking Trites to task!! :Heh, heh, heh:
After the meeting, all but 2 (1 Bloq & 1 lieberal) came up to shake our hands. Mike Drop. Commanded the room were the most repeated phrases.
Best one was Why do we need to bother with any more Witnesses?
And then they took us out to a rather fine (expensive) dinner
Safe to say we carried the field, and that it was worth all the bull$hit getting there and back!
Evidence - FOPO (44-1) - No. 56 - House of Commons of Canada
www.ourcommons.ca
Dr. Murdoch McAllister (Associate Professor, University of British Columbia, As an Individual):
Good afternoon. Thanks for inviting me as a witness.
I'd like to start with a study on B.C. harbour seals. They've increased about tenfold in abundance since the 1970s, and are at approximately 100,000 animals. Their dietary requirements are approximately two kilograms per day, leading to about 70,000 tonnes eaten per year. Diet studies show the consumption of numerous different fish species, including salmon and other valuable fish stocks, and the consumption of species at different life stages, let's say, including juveniles.
My research team has looked at predation rates on chinook and coho in southern B.C. Numerous of these stocks have collapsed to very low levels. Despite very low fishing rates since the early nineties, these stocks have not recovered or shown signs of recovery. Our study, which looked in detail at predation on juvenile chinook and coho salmon by harbour seals, indicates that those predation rates have increased about tenfold. They're up to about 40% of all juvenile chinook salmon entering salt water and about 60% of all juvenile coho salmon entering salt water. That's in southern B.C.
What are the population effects? We've done a meta-analysis of 20 different chinook salmon stocks, looking at the productivity. We found a significant negative association between stock productivity and local harbour seal abundance for 14 out of 20 of these chinook salmon stocks. With the increase in harbour seals, our study has shown that the sustainable harvest rates on average have dropped by about 44%. Sustainable yields have dropped, in association with harbour seal predation, by about 74% since the 1970s.
In another study, we investigated hypotheses about Steller's sea lion predation on sockeye salmon. This is the Fraser River sockeye salmon. There's been about a sixfold increase in abundance of Steller's sea lions, up to about 48,000 animals, at least up until 2017. That's species-wide. They eat on average about 18 kilograms of fish a day. This leads to about 300,000 tonnes eaten per year, more than the combined fisheries and aquaculture tonnage in B.C. per year.
We found that with the low-abundance sockeye salmon runs, harvest rates have dropped, and these stocks are continuing to decline. Our analysis of predation around the northern end of Vancouver Island by Steller's sea lions suggests that the predation rates are up about 60% per year, and they're highest in the years when the abundance of sockeye is lowest. Our study indicates that these low-abundance sockeye salmon stocks could be stuck in a predator pit caused by predation.
Predators are thinning out west coast herring, says research
The consumption of herring by marine mammals and fish off the west coast of Vancouver Island is giving the species little chance to rebuild to a higher volume, according to indicators recently presented by a Nuu-chah-nulth-led research project.
The amount being consumed by predators – particularly hake, humpback whales and stellar sea lions – is coming close to what the herring population in Nuu-chah-nulth territory is able to support, said Jim Lane, acting manager of the Uu-a-thluk fisheries program, during a Nuu-chah-nulth Council of Haa’wiih Forum on Fisheries on Feb. 24.
“Predator consumption is almost approaching the total biomass production of WCVI herring,” he said.
The consumption of herring by marine mammals and fish off the west coast of Vancouver Island is giving the species little chance to rebuild to a higher volume, according to indicators recently presented by a Nuu-chah-nulth-led research project. The amount being consumed by predators –...
Thanks AA, you are bang on with so many issues - all thoroughly researched and objectively presented. One of the first on this forum to connect the issues within the CSAS process highlighting the politicization of science to support internal and external influence on science advice outcomes. Hopefully external science, not the CSAS brand of science, will prevail in aligning DFO management to taking the correct course of action on the pinniped file. Avoidance of doing the right thing is becoming increasingly more difficult as the external science evidence continues to mount.
It’s early April - the time of year when ice floes reappear off the coast of Newfoundland, and sealers, just as they have done for centuries, head out to them to undertake the harp seal hunt. With the launch of the hunt,...
It’s early April - the time of year when ice floes reappear off the coast of Newfoundland, and sealers, just as they have done for centuries, head out to them to undertake the harp seal hunt. With the launch of the hunt,...
there's over a thousands animals on the endanger lists and harp seals is not one of them. The campaign is one if the few where we make more money then we put into it.
kinda explains why ENGOs pretty much ignore stuff like thompson steelhead
there's over a thousands animals on the endanger lists and harp seals is not one of them. The campaign is one if the few where we make more money then we put into it.
kinda explains why ENGOs pretty much ignore stuff like thompson steelhead
Yepper! One of the few rare instances of Watson telling truths - but only about an organization he was booteed out and only after getting the boot. That seems to be a pattern for Watson and other malignant narcissists (e.g. McAllister) - getting booted out of ENGOs because they are too toxic. Watson was recently again booted out - this time the SSS instead of GreenPeace.
Also interesting that the background foto for that youtube video is one of Watson with Sheen - who Watson dragged off to the Magdellin Islands when Watson tried to dictate to the islanders that they should give up their much-needed employment to brush seals. They were both run otta town and it was quite the story. The truth is always stranger than fiction....
Maybe the successful strategy for Fraser steelhead is to get Pamela Lee out hugging them... She could start a new TV series called mykisswatch and bounce out and hug a steelhead...
Evidence - FOPO (44-1) - No. 56 - House of Commons of Canada
www.ourcommons.ca
Dr. Murdoch McAllister (Associate Professor, University of British Columbia, As an Individual):
Good afternoon. Thanks for inviting me as a witness.
I'd like to start with a study on B.C. harbour seals. They've increased about tenfold in abundance since the 1970s, and are at approximately 100,000 animals. Their dietary requirements are approximately two kilograms per day, leading to about 70,000 tonnes eaten per year. Diet studies show the consumption of numerous different fish species, including salmon and other valuable fish stocks, and the consumption of species at different life stages, let's say, including juveniles.
My research team has looked at predation rates on chinook and coho in southern B.C. Numerous of these stocks have collapsed to very low levels. Despite very low fishing rates since the early nineties, these stocks have not recovered or shown signs of recovery. Our study, which looked in detail at predation on juvenile chinook and coho salmon by harbour seals, indicates that those predation rates have increased about tenfold. They're up to about 40% of all juvenile chinook salmon entering salt water and about 60% of all juvenile coho salmon entering salt water. That's in southern B.C.
What are the population effects? We've done a meta-analysis of 20 different chinook salmon stocks, looking at the productivity. We found a significant negative association between stock productivity and local harbour seal abundance for 14 out of 20 of these chinook salmon stocks. With the increase in harbour seals, our study has shown that the sustainable harvest rates on average have dropped by about 44%. Sustainable yields have dropped, in association with harbour seal predation, by about 74% since the 1970s.
In another study, we investigated hypotheses about Steller's sea lion predation on sockeye salmon. This is the Fraser River sockeye salmon. There's been about a sixfold increase in abundance of Steller's sea lions, up to about 48,000 animals, at least up until 2017. That's species-wide. They eat on average about 18 kilograms of fish a day. This leads to about 300,000 tonnes eaten per year, more than the combined fisheries and aquaculture tonnage in B.C. per year.
We found that with the low-abundance sockeye salmon runs, harvest rates have dropped, and these stocks are continuing to decline. Our analysis of predation around the northern end of Vancouver Island by Steller's sea lions suggests that the predation rates are up about 60% per year, and they're highest in the years when the abundance of sockeye is lowest. Our study indicates that these low-abundance sockeye salmon stocks could be stuck in a predator pit caused by predation.
I'm sure many hours of research went into this article, however it is very narrowly focused on just one issue. As an example where does the the herring ROE fishery fit into this whole equation ? What other changes in biodiversity have we seen since the early 70's . What impacts has global warming, fish farms, increased Co2 levels, and hatchery raised salmon had on either the increase of seals or the decrease in salmon ? So many things to investigate before one can blame seals on the reduced salmon levels ...
Well that particular FOPO senate committee series titled ECOSYSTEM IMPACTS AND MANAGEMENT OF PINNIPED POPULATIONS was directed to focus this series of meetings on seals and the seal hunt. It kinda makes sense that is what they focus on.
Yes there are other stressors, as well. That reality does NOT dismiss any impacts due to seals.
I think the conversation admitting the impact of seals is a conversation that most ENGOs and their supporters are uncomfortable and unused to having. I believe that this demographic is largely urban and have been conditioned by their media feeds from ENGOs to only see all MMs as "wonderful" and "special" (aka NOT a harvestable resource), and lack the experience to truly understand these impacts - because they largely do not wish to - nor do they want anyone else to point out these impacts as that may change their emotional attachment to these "wonderful" and "special" icons. Their carefully-developed narrative is being challenged and they feel threatened and wish to shut off any dissenting opinions, IMHO.
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