Martin Smart Wildlife
Pacific Herring Spawn
(Parksville Bay - Deep Bay)
Every spring on Vancouver Island we enjoy the spectacle of the Pacific Herring Spawn which generally takes place from late February to early April, particularly along the east coast of the Island between Parksville Bay and Deep Bay. This is one of the major spawning regions for Pacific Herring in Canada providing an abundance of food and attracting literally thousands of water birds and other marine mammals such as seals and sea-lions, and indeed fishermen, to the local beaches and bays. The event is a photographer's paradise and I have put together the following short compilation of images, mostly taken during the 2008 season, which focuses on gulls and sea-lions: |