Sexual maturity of waved whelk in all commercial fishing areas in Quebec

Description

Scientist Sylvie Brulotte, a whelk expert from the Maurice Lamontagne Institute in Mont-Joli, Quebec, is leading a research project in co-operation with commercial whelk fishermen to acquire information on the size of whelk at sexual maturity in the 15 fishing areas of the Estuary and Gulf of St. Lawrence. This species of marine gastropod (an ocean delicacy) has limited mobility and a means of reproduction that causes it to be very vulnerable to overfishing. In spring, whelk samples of all sizes are gathered in order to obtain data on their sex, sexual maturity, age and the prevalence of gonadal parasites. This information will help DFO Fisheries Management to determine if the current minimum legal size (70 mm) should be adjusted to preserve the reproductive potential of the whelk in each fishing area. An adequate adjustment of the minimum legal size based on the size at sexual maturity will allow whelk populations to better resist fishing pressures. The results will be presented at the time of the next stock assessment and published by the DFO Canadian Science Advisory Secretariat.

Program Name

Fisheries Science Collaborative Program (FSCP)

Year(s)

2016 - 2018

Ecoregion(s)

Estuary and Gulf of St. Lawrence (Atlantic)

Principal Investigator(s)

Sylvie Brulotte
DFO

Co-leader(s)

Commercial whelk fishermen