Bering wolffish COSEWIC assessment and status report: chapter 7

Habitat

Habitat Requirements

Little is known of the habitat requirements of the Bering wolffish. Andriyashev (1954) reports that Bering wolffish are the most shallow-water species of the genus Anarhichas, and that the species inhabits coastal zones on rocky bottoms among stones covered with algae. Three sub-adult specimens were collected in water depths of 1.2 meters from Camden Bay in the Alaskan Beaufort Sea (Fruge and Wiswar, 1991). During ice-free seasons (spring to late fall), they keep to the shallower coastal habitat, likely moving offshore only during the winter months when the shallow coastal regions are ice-bound (Andriyashev, 1954). Fruge and Wiswar (1991) suggest that areas that are directly influenced by freshwater plumes from river mouths, e.g. Mackenzie Delta, may not be favourable for wolffish.


Habitat Protection/Ownership

Bathurst Inlet, an area the size of the Bay of Fundy and home to the only known Canadian population of Bering wolffish, is not protected by either the territorial government of Nunavut or the federal government. The area is fished by a local fishing guide/outfitter and by the local Inuit.

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