Arctic Investigations by the Fisheries Research Board of Canada, 1956-57

Abstract

... In 1956 fisheries studies were concentrated in the Mackenzie Delta region between Herschel Island and Tuktoyaktuk, where fishes are relatively varied and abundant. ... In addition to substantial beluga and ringed seal collections which were made for the mammal investigations, about 11,000 fish were sampled in all. ... a preliminary survey of fish stocks in Pelly and Garry lakes of the Back River system was undertaken .... The lakes, which are shallow (20-30 feet), were found to support sufficient stocks of whitefishes and lake trout to permit organized subsistence fishing should this be necessary. ... In 1957 one party carried out fisheries studies up the Mackenzie River from Aklavik to Fort Norman, and another surveyed fish stocks at Coppermine, N.W.T. An intensive study was made of the char run in Rowley River on Rowley Island, Foxe Basin by the M .V. Calanus and in northern Hudson Bay by whaleboat and by peterhead from Coral Harbour. Forty-five walrus were tagged in the latter area, and 20 were examined in detail. In Foxe Basin 60 walrus and 220 seals were sampled. The reproductive cycle, ages at maturity, and life expectancy have to a large extent been clarified by work on aging from growth layers in the cementum of molar teeth and in tusk development. ... In 1956 and 1957, a continued increase in the fishery for pilot whales in Newfoundland (1956 catch, about 10,000) led to emphasis on population studies. Investigations were begun as well on minke whales or lesser rorquals, with a small fishery at Dildo, Newfoundland as the source of material. ... During a 12-month period beginning in September 1955, collecting of plankton, benthos and hydrographic samples was carried out in northern Foxe Basin from the M.V. Calanus, based at Igloolik. Biological samples included net plankton, microplankton, bottom fauna and intertidal collections. Hydrographic sections were run across Fury and Hecla Strait, and between Jens Munk and Koch, Koch and Rowley, Koch and Baffin, Baffin and Bray, and Bray and Rowley Islands. Additional stations were occupied and water temperature, salinity, oxygen and phosphate values were determined. It thus has been possible to follow through a complete yearly cycle of hydrography and productivity in Foxe Basin. ...