Shared by DavidSuzukiFDN on Mar 13, 2012
David Suzuki Foundation Sustainable Fisheries Analyst explains why the spring arrival of spawning herring is the ecological event of the year on the Pacific North Coast. Read more.
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Shared by PacificWildLive on Mar 19, 2012
The Heiltsuk First Nation has used the SOK product as trade currency since before contact. Their right to harvest and commercially sell SOK was upheld in the Supreme Court ruling R. v. Gladstone. SOK is a sustainable fishery in which not all of the fertilized eggs are harvested and the adults survive to spawn in subsequent years. The commercial sac roe fishery is much more destructive to ecosystems. Tonnes of herring are netted before they have a chance to spawn. The eggs are taken from the females and sold to foreign markets. This practice can have a devastating effect on herring populations.
Herring SOK and Other Traditional Fisheries
Pacific Herring: A Foundation Species
Pacific Herring Life Cycle
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