Catch, effort, location (latitude and longitude), and associated biological data from groundfish multi-species longline surveys in the northern portion of the inlets and protected waters east of Vancouver Island, British Columbia.Introduction The Inside North Hard Bottom Longline (HBLL) survey is one of a set of long-term and coordinated surveys that together cover most of the nearshore, hard-bottom habitat of coastal British Columbia. The other surveys are the Inside South HBLL survey, Outside North HBLL survey, and Outside South HBLL survey. The Inside North HBLL survey was first conducted in 2003, and repeated in 2004 and 2007. Starting in 2008, this survey has been repeated every second year, in alternate years to the Inside South HBLL survey, with the exception that no surveys were conducted in 2017. The survey was not impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The objective of these surveys is to provide fishery-independent abundance indices and associated biological data for the assessment of nearshore rockfishes and other groundfish species that live on untrawlable, hard bottom habitats. The surveys follow a random depth-stratified design and the sampling units are 2 km by 2 km blocks. The surveys use size 13/0 circle hooks, baited with frozen squid.The Inside North HBLL Survey is conducted by Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) and takes place on the Canadian Coast Guard Research Vessel Neocaligus. This survey covers the northern portion of the inlets and protected waters east of Vancouver Island, including Johnstone Strait and Broughton Archipelago in Pacific Fishery Management areas (PFMAs) 12 and 13.Effort This table contains information about the survey trips and fishing events (sets) that are part of this survey series. Trip-level information includes the year the survey took place, a unique trip identifier, the vessel that conducted the survey and the trip start and end dates (the dates the vessel was away from the dock conducting the survey). Set-level information includes the date, time, location and depth that fishing took place, soak time, hook spacing, and numbers of hooks counted. All successful fishing events are included, regardless of what was caught.CatchThis table contains the catch information from successful fishing events. Catches are identified to species or to the lowest taxonomic level possible. From 2003 to 2016, all catches are counted, and most catches are weighed; some catches are too small (“trace” amounts) or too large (e.g. very large Big Skate) to weigh. From 2019 onwards, catches are recorded as counts only. The unique trip identifier and set number are included so that catches can be related to the fishing event information (including capture location).BiologyThis table contains the available biological data for catches which were sampled. Data may include any or all of length, sex, weight, age. Different length types are measured depending on the species. Age structures are collected when possible for species where validated aging methods exist and are archived until required for an assessment; therefore, all existing structures have not been aged at this time. Tissue samples (usually a fin clip) may be collected for genetic (DNA) analysis for some individuals of particular species. Genetic samples may be archived until required for analysis; for more information please see the data contacts. The unique trip identifier and set number are included so that samples can be related to the fishing event and catch information.

This data set is a generalized characterization of the offshore and inshore environments of Canada’s Pacific Ocean. Compiled from various sources to depict the biogenic habitats, pelagic habitats, and general bottom types such as offshore and inshore by depth strata.

Catch, effort, location (latitude, longitude), and associated biological data from groundfish multi-species longline surveys in British Columbia.Introduction This is a set of long-term and coordinated surveys that together cover most of the nearshore, hard-bottom habitat of coastal British Columbia. The objective of these surveys is to provide fishery-independent abundance indices and associated biological data for the assessment of nearshore rockfishes and other groundfish species that live on untrawlable, hard bottom habitats. The surveys use standardized “snap and swivel” longline hook gear set on the ocean floor. The surveys follow a random depth-stratified design and the sampling units are 2 km by 2 km blocks. The Inside Hard Bottom Longline (HBLL) Surveys are conducted by Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) and take place on the Canadian Coast Guard Research Vessel Neocaligus. The Inside surveys cover the inlets and protected waters east of Vancouver Island (Pacific Fishery Management areas 12 – 20 and 27- 29). The survey area is divided into a northern and southern region, which are surveyed in alternating years. The Inside North region includes Johnstone Strait and Broughton Archipelago. The Inside South region includes Desolation Sound, the Strait of Georgia and southern Gulf Islands. The Inside HBLL surveys use size 13/0 circle hooks, baited with frozen squid.The Outside HBLL Surveys are conducted by DFO in collaboration with the Pacific Halibut Management Association (PHMA) and take place on several chartered commercial fishing vessels each year. The Outside surveys cover most of the British Columbia coastline, excluding the inlets and protected waters east of Vancouver Island (i.e. excluding Pacific Fishery Management areas 12 – 20 and 27- 29). The survey area is divided into a northern and southern region, which are surveyed in alternating years. The Outside North region includes the mainland coast north of Milbanke Sound, Dixon Entrance, and the east and west coasts of Haida Gwaii. The Outside South region includes the mainland coast south of Milbanke Sound, Queen Charlotte Sound, and the north and west coasts of Vancouver Island. The PHMA provides the chartered commercial fishing vessels and field technicians, while DFO provides support for running the surveys, including survey design and equipment. The Outside HBLL surveys use size 14/0 circle hooks, baited with frozen squid.

Catch, effort, location (latitude and longitude), and associated biological data from groundfish multi-species longline surveys on the southern British Columbia coast, excluding the inlets and protected waters east of Vancouver Island.Introduction The Outside South Hard Bottom Longline (HBLL) survey is one of a set of long-term and coordinated surveys that together cover most of the nearshore, hard-bottom habitat of coastal British Columbia. The other surveys are the Outside North HBLL survey, Inside South HBLL survey, and Inside North HBLL surveyThe Outside South HBLL survey was first conducted in 2007 and has been repeated every second year in alternate years to the Outside North HBLL survey, with the exception that no surveys were conducted in 2013. The survey was not impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The objective of these surveys is to provide fishery-independent abundance indices and associated biological data for the assessment of nearshore rockfishes and other groundfish species that live on untrawlable, hard bottom habitats. The surveys follow a random depth-stratified design and the sampling units are 2 km by 2 km blocks. The Outside HBLL surveys use size 14/0 circle hooks, baited with frozen squid.The Outside South HBLL Survey is conducted by DFO in collaboration with the Pacific Halibut Management Association (PHMA) and takes place on several chartered commercial fishing vessels each year. This survey covers the southern portion of the British Columbia coastline, including the mainland coast south of Milbanke Sound, Queen Charlotte Sound, and the north and west coasts of Vancouver Island. The PHMA provides the chartered commercial fishing vessels and field technicians, while DFO provides support for running the surveys, including survey design and equipment. Effort This table contains information about the survey trips and fishing events (sets) that are part of this survey series. Trip-level information includes the year the survey took place, a unique trip identifier, the vessel that conducted the survey and the trip start and end dates (the dates the vessel was away from the dock conducting the survey). Set-level information includes the date, time, location and depth that fishing took place, soak time, hook spacing, and numbers of hooks counted. All successful fishing events are included, regardless of what was caught.CatchThis table contains the catch information from successful fishing events. Catches are identified to species or to the lowest taxonomic level possible. Catches are recorded as counts only. The unique trip identifier and set number are included so that catches can be related to the fishing event information (including capture location).BiologyThis table contains the available biological data for catches which were sampled. Data may include any or all of length, sex, weight, age. Different length types are measured depending on the species. Age structures are collected when possible for species where validated aging methods exist and are archived until required for an assessment; therefore, all existing structures have not been aged at this time. Tissue samples (usually a fin clip) may be collected for genetic (DNA) analysis for some individuals of particular species. Genetic samples may be archived until required for analysis; for more information please see the data contacts. The unique trip identifier and set number are included so that samples can be related to the fishing event and catch information.

Catch, effort, location (latitude and longitude), and associated biological data from groundfish multi-species longline surveys on the northern British Columbia coast, excluding the inlets and protected waters east of Vancouver Island.Introduction The Outside North Hard Bottom Longline (HBLL) survey is one of a set of long-term and coordinated surveys that together cover most of the nearshore, hard-bottom habitat of coastal British Columbia. The other surveys are the Outside South HBLL survey, Inside North HBLL survey, and Inside South HBLL survey. The Outside North HBLL survey was first conducted in 2006 and has been repeated every second year in alternate years to the Outside South HBLL survey, with the exception that no surveys were conducted in 2013. The survey was not impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The objective of these surveys is to provide fishery-independent abundance indices and associated biological data for the assessment of nearshore rockfishes and other groundfish species that live on untrawlable, hard bottom habitats. The surveys follow a random depth-stratified design and the sampling units are 2 km by 2 km blocks. The Outside HBLL surveys use size 14/0 circle hooks, baited with frozen squid.The Outside North HBLL Survey is conducted by DFO in collaboration with the Pacific Halibut Management Association (PHMA) and takes place on several chartered commercial fishing vessels each year. This survey covers the northern portion of the British Columbia coastline, including the mainland coast north of Milbanke Sound, Dixon Entrance, and the east and west coasts of Haida Gwaii. The PHMA provides the chartered commercial fishing vessels and field technicians, while DFO provides support for running the surveys, including survey design and equipment. EffortThis table contains information about the survey trips and fishing events (sets) that are part of this survey series. Trip-level information includes the year the survey took place, a unique trip identifier, the vessel that conducted the survey and the trip start and end dates (the dates the vessel was away from the dock conducting the survey). Set-level information includes the date, time, location and depth that fishing took place, soak time, hook spacing, and numbers of hooks counted. All successful fishing events are included, regardless of what was caught.CatchThis table contains the catch information from successful fishing events. Catches are identified to species or to the lowest taxonomic level possible. Catches are recorded as counts only. The unique trip identifier and set number are included so that catches can be related to the fishing event information (including capture location).BiologyThis table contains the available biological data for catches which were sampled. Data may include any or all of length, sex, weight, age. Different length types are measured depending on the species. Age structures are collected when possible for species where validated aging methods exist and are archived until required for an assessment; therefore, all existing structures have not been aged at this time. Tissue samples (usually a fin clip) may be collected for genetic (DNA) analysis for some individuals of particular species. Genetic samples may be archived until required for analysis; for more information please see the data contacts. The unique trip identifier and set number are included so that samples can be related to the fishing event and catch information.

Catch, effort, location (latitude and longitude), and associated biological data from groundfish multi-species longline surveys in the southern portion of the inlets and protected waters east of Vancouver Island, British Columbia.Introduction The Inside South Hard Bottom Longline (HBLL) survey is one of a set of long-term and coordinated surveys that together cover most of the nearshore, hard-bottom habitat of coastal British Columbia. The other surveys are the Inside North HBLL survey, Outside South HBLL survey, and Outside North HBLL survey.The Inside South HBLL survey was first conducted in 2005. Starting in 2009, this survey has been repeated every second year, with the exception that no surveys were conducted in 2017, and the 2020 survey was postponed to 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The objective of these surveys is to provide fishery-independent abundance indices and associated biological data for the assessment of nearshore rockfishes and other groundfish species that live on untrawlable, hard bottom habitats. The surveys follow a random depth-stratified design and the sampling units are 2 km by 2 km blocks. The surveys use size 13/0 circle hooks, baited with frozen squid. The Inside South HBLL Survey is conducted by Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) and takes place on the Canadian Coast Guard Research Vessel Neocaligus. This survey covers the southern portion of the inlets and protected waters east of Vancouver Island, including Desolation Sound, the Strait of Georgia and southern Gulf Islands in Pacific Fishery Management areas (PFMAs) 14 – 20, 28, and 29.EffortThis table contains information about the survey trips and fishing events (sets) that are part of this survey series. Trip-level information includes the year the survey took place, a unique trip identifier, the vessel that conducted the survey and the trip start and end dates (the dates the vessel was away from the dock conducting the survey). Set-level information includes the date, time, location and depth that fishing took place, soak time, hook spacing, and numbers of hooks counted. All successful fishing events are included, regardless of what was caught.CatchThis table contains the catch information from successful fishing events. Catches are identified to species or to the lowest taxonomic level possible. From 2005 to 2018, all catches are counted, and most catches are weighed; some catches are too small (“trace” amounts) or too large (e.g. very large Big Skate) to weigh. From 2020 onwards, catches are recorded as counts only. The unique trip identifier and set number are included so that catches can be related to the fishing event information (including capture location).BiologyThis table contains the available biological data for catches which were sampled. Data may include any or all of length, sex, weight, age. Different length types are measured depending on the species. Age structures are collected when possible for species where validated aging methods exist and are archived until required for an assessment; therefore, all existing structures have not been aged at this time. Tissue samples (usually a fin clip) may be collected for genetic (DNA) analysis for some individuals of particular species. Genetic samples may be archived until required for analysis; for more information please see the data contacts. The unique trip identifier and set number are included so that samples can be related to the fishing event and catch information.

The purpose of the survey is to document and record habitat types and associated algae and marine invertebrate species in a variety of habitat types. Transect locations are randomly selected throughout the study area, which rotates between the north and south coasts of British Columbia on a biannual basis. Transects are laid perpendicular to the shoreline. A team of two divers swim the transect with data sheets to collect habitat, algae and marine invertebrate data as detailed below in the methods section. Data is keypunched in an MS Access database that can be queried for species observations and environmental information.This dataset includes three tables pulled from the original database containing observations by species, observations by quadrat, and additional header information for each observation. All three tables can be linked by the field HKey. Three lookup tables are included as well, one for algae, one for invertebrates, and one for substrates.

The Brier Island/Digby Neck area has been identified as an Ecologically and Biologically Significant Area (EBSA) by Fisheries and Oceans Canada and is one of four marine areas within the Bay of Fundy recognised by Parks Canada as of national significance for marine conservation planning. The area is representative of important outer Bay of Fundy features with significant marine mammal, bird, and benthic diversity including potentially important aggregations of sensitive benthic species such as horse mussel and sponge. Much of the information used for this recognition is now over 40 years old and should be re-validated using standardised georeferenced survey methods. As a first phase, a diver-based survey of the sublittoral habitats and associated species was conducted in August and September of 2017 for the Brier Island area. This report summarises the major sublittoral habitat types, species assemblages, and oceanographic conditions observed at 20 locations including Northwest and Southwest Ledges, Gull Rock, Peter’s Island, and Grand Passage. A total of 962 records were made of 178 taxa, consisting of 43 algae and 135 animals. Comparison with historical records largely confirmed the continued presence of unique habitats and species assemblages for which this area was initially recognised as an EBSA. Differences in species richness observed for cryptic and less known taxonomic groups such as sponges and bryozoans were attributable to changes in survey methods and knowledge. Based on these findings, additional surveys of inshore and offshore Brier Island using more quantitative methods developed for other Bay of Fundy EBSAs would further support regional MPA network planning and provide relative scales of species diversity and habitat coverage for this area.

PURPOSE:The SCUBA survey was designed to assess the density of small lobsters (1-3 years of age) in rocky reefs, in the nearshore habitat.DESCRIPTION:Total number of transects surveyed and total number of lobsters measured for each site in each year. There are some sites that do not have any coordinates identified, therefore these have not been included in the Web Map Services (WMS). PARAMETERS COLLECTED:size measurement (biological); species counts (ecological); substrate (geological)SAMPLING METHODS:Transects are laid-out from a small vessel using buoys, anchors, and a 100 m leaded rope along the bottom, marked at 5 m intervals. A strip transect survey method is used whereas two divers sample a 1 or 2 m strip (dependent on lobster density) alongside either side of the leaded rope. All captured lobster are measured (carapace length) and all lobsters of ≥20 mm carapace length are sexed. The complexity and suitability of the habitat is assessed in the 5 m sections (e.g. rocky reefs, sand, large boulders).USE LIMITATION:To ensure scientific integrity and appropriate use of the data, we would encourage you to contact the data custodian.

The Observed Habitat Polygons show the various types of particular habitat that have been observed or calculated by biologists as well as an expectation of different species found in the habitats. Each bioarea has several observed habitats, and it is the combination of the bioarea and habitat observed number that identifies each unique observed habitat.