Characteristics and Spawning Ecology of Capelin (Mallotus villosus) in the Arctic Regions of Eastern and Western Canada

The ubiquitous effects of climate change are expected to influence the prevalence of Capelin in Arctic marine environments, such that small changes in temperature (2-4 °C) can result in large-scale range shifts and fine-scale shifts in association with habitat. There has been minimal investigation of the characteristics of spawning Capelin in the Arctic. During the summer of 2014 shoals of Capelin were observed in the eastern Arctic (Pangnirtung, NU) and in the western Arctic (Darnley Bay, NWT) shortly after sea-ice breakup (late June; early July). In Darnley Bay, the majority of fish sampled were females (n=187, males n=92) in spawning condition and fertilized eggs were collected. Mean (+ SD) total length of sampled females was 132.9 + 9.9 mm and 147.1 ± 7.7 mm for males. In Pangnirtung, fish were primarily male (n=75) with total mean length 175.3 + 16.9 mm. Interestingly, the timing of spawning in Arctic regions was either before (late June in Pangnirtung) or during (July in Darnley Bay) spawning of sub-Arctic populations in Newfoundland. These observations support the likelihood that Capelin populations are persistent in the Arctic, and suggest that their role may grow in importance as changes occur.