Tagging Programs

Salmon Halibut Lingcod Sturgeon Skate

Salmon

Floy Tags

DFO is studying the migration and growth of salmon in several areas of the B.C. coast. Salmon that have been hooked and released from sport fishing and commercial trolling boats are marked with a “floy” tag just behind the dorsal fin. If you catch one of these tagged fish, please return the tag to any DFO office or mail it to:
Doug Herriott, Pacific Biological Station, 3190 Hammond Bay Road, Nanaimo, B.C. V9R 5K6 or call 1-866-483-9994 for more information.

Please include your name and address as well as the date, location and biological information (fork length, sex, weight) of the catch. A reward (cap with a badge) will be given for each returned tag.

Petersen Tags

Petersen disk tags are 11mm or 19mm circular plastic disks (normally clear, pink or red in colour) which are applied immediately below the dorsal fin of adult salmon. Each tag consists of a pair of disks arranged on each side of the salmon’s back; rarely, two tags (four disks) may be applied. These tags are used by biologists to enumerate salmon populations in various spawning locations throughout the Fraser River drainage. Tags are uniquely numbered and labelled “DO NOT REMOVE - NO REWARD”. If you encounter a tagged fish on or near the spawning grounds, please do not remove the tag or disturb the fish. If you catch a tagged salmon while angling, and choose to retain the fish, please record the date, time and location (as specifically as possible) of the capture as well as the species and Petersen tag number. Report this information immediately to
DFO, Fraser River Stock Assessment Data Manager, 100 Annacis Parkway, Unit 3 , Annacis Island, Delta BC, V3M 6A2. Call 604-666-7269 or email Tracy.Cone@dfo-mpo.gc.ca

Halibut

The International Pacific Halibut Commission (IPHC) has an ongoing tagging program to monitor halibut migration and mortality. A plastic-coated wire tag is attached to the dark-side cheek tissue of the halibut. Dart tags may also be found on or near the head or embedded in the body. Additionally, halibut may be tagged with large electronic “satellite” tags that record temperature and depth. Satellite tags are attached to the darkside just below the dorsal fin, and are secured via a titanium dart resting in the muscle tissue. Satellite-tagged halibut may have the entire tag body (it looks like a microphone with an antenna) or only the plastic leader and dart (meaning that the tag body has detached from the fish). Each type of tag has a unique number and IPHC printed on the side. Fishers should retain all tagged halibut.

If you catch a tagged halibut, please: record the tag number, the recovery date, location and depth; fish length, sex, and include the ear bones if possible; remove the tag (and the dart if from a satellite tag) and send it, along with your name and address, to:
International Pacific Halibut Commission, P.O. Box 95009, Seattle, Washington, U.S.A. 98145-2009; phone (206) 634-1838.

A reward will be given for each returned tag. For wire tags and satellite tag leaders, please indicate whether you wish to have the $5.00 reward or a baseball cap sent to you. A $500 reward is given for satellite tag bodies.

Lingcod

The Department’s Pacific Biological Station has tagged lingcod to determine migration and abundance. The tag is a small yellow plastic tube inserted on the left side just below the first dorsal fin. If you catch a tagged lingcod, please make a note of the date, location and method of capture. Then call one of the following persons (collect): Schon Acheson, Vancouver, B.C., 604-666-2658; or Maria Surry, Nanaimo, B.C., 250-756-7317.

A reward is offered for return of the tag with catch information.

Sturgeon

The provincial fisheries program (BC Ministry of Water, Air and Land Protection) undertook studies from 1995-1999 to identify abundance, spawning areas, migratory patterns and habitat use of white sturgeon in the Fraser River watershed. Part of these studies involved tagging fish with numbered, coloured plastic tags and/or a radio transmitter attached near the dorsal fin. As sturgeon are long-lived, anglers may continue to recover these tags for several more years and can assist in sturgeon conservation efforts by reporting tag information.

If you capture a marked fish, before releasing it, please record:

1. location, date and gear used
2. colour and number of plastic tag
3. number of radio tag

Please do not remove tags. Forward the information to:
Ministry of Water, Air and Land Protection, P.O. Box 9338, STN PROV GOVT, Victoria, B.C., V8W 9M1, Attn: Dr. T. Down, phone 250-387-9715.

Skate

In March 2003, a tagging program for big skate (Raja binoculata) was initiated by DFO. The objective of the study is to gather information on seasonal migration patterns of big skate and their growth. To date, more than 17,000 skates have been tagged in northern B.C. and about 1,600 tags have been returned. The furthest ranging skate so far was captured in the Bering Sea, approximately 2,160 km away from where it was tagged.

Skates are tagged in their left wing, using one of the following two types of tags:

• a small yellow dart-anchor spaghetti tag on skates less than 80 cm in length
• a larger orange metal-anchor spaghetti tag on skates more than 80 cm in length

If you find a tagged skate, take note of the tag serial number, along with date, location, method of capture, and the total length of the skate. Please send this information, along with the tag itself , to one of the contact persons listed below. A reward hat will be provided for each skate tag returned, or alternatively, a reward vest will be provided for each group of five skate tags returned.

Bill Andrews Pacific Biological Station 3190 Hammond Bay Road Nanaimo, BC V9T 6N7 Tel: 250-756-7166
Schon Acheson Senior Groundfish Port Sampler Unit # 3, 100 Annacis Parkway Delta, BC V3M 6A2 Tel: 604-666-2658	Kristina Anderson Groundfish Port Sampler 417 2nd Ave. West Prince Rupert, BC V8J 1G8 Tel: 250-627-3475