By Sentinel Staff
The Sitka Sound sac roe herring fishery opened at two locations Saturday, but there was no fishing Friday or Sunday, the Department of Fish and Game announced over the weekend.
Areas were opened for seining Saturday north of town in the waters of St. John Baptist Bay, Neva Strait and Salisbury Sound, and also in Leesoffskaia Bay, five miles south of Sitka.
The opening in Leesoffskaia began at 2 p.m. and lasted until 3:15, while up north seiners put their nets in the water at 2 p.m. and fished until 6 p.m. It was the second opening in both areas within the past week, but Saturday’s fishing in Leesoffskaia was restricted to a smaller area than before.
Of the five test sets conducted between Friday and Sunday, only one netted fish with over 10 percent mature roe – one of the criteria for commercial harvest. That set was in Leesoffskaia Bay on Friday.
On Friday Fish and Game announced the sac roe herring catch from Thursday’s opening in Salisbury Sound was 1,860 tons, bringing the total for season to 3,080 tons. The guideline harvest level this year is 30,124 tons.
Herring spawn on beaches extended north and east this weekend, with spawning observed on the shores of eastern Kruzof Island up to Hayward Strait, on the south end of Krestof Island, and closer to town on Middle Island and Crow Island. The total so far is 20.6 nautical miles of spawn on area beaches.
