Fisheries and Oceans Canada

Species characterization by environmental DNA (eDNA) is a method that allows the use of DNA released into the environment by organisms from various sources (secretions, faeces, gametes, tissues, etc.). It is a complementary tool to standard sampling methods for the identification of biodiversity....

Important sites: reproduction, feeding and concentration area. Data extracted from the Fish Habitat Management Information System (FHAMIS) according to a literature review of documents produced between 1976 and 1999.

This layer represents important areas for the Harp seal (Pagophilus groenlandicus). It includes the three main pupping areas for this species and migratory pathways used by Harp seals to migrate between its summering (Baffin Bay) and wintering (Gulf of St. Lawrence and Newfoundland and Labrador...

Three marine spatial planning areas are delineated in Eastern Canada to define the spatial extents of marine spatial plans being led by Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO): the Estuary and Gulf of St. Lawrence (EGSL), the Newfoundland and Labrador (NL) Shelves, and the Scotian Shelf and Bay of...

This layer details Important Areas (IAs) relevant to key seabird species in the Pacific North Coast Integrated Management Area (PNCIMA). This data was mapped to inform the selection of marine Ecologically and Biologically Significant Areas (EBSA). Experts have indicated that these areas are...

This layer details Important Areas (IAs) relevant to key cetacean species in the Pacific North Coast Integrated Management Area (PNCIMA). This data was mapped to inform the selection of marine Ecologically and Biologically Significant Areas (EBSA). Experts have indicated that these areas are...

This layer details Important Areas (IAs) relevant to key fish species in the Pacific North Coast Integrated Management Area (PNCIMA). This data was mapped to inform the selection of marine Ecologically and Biologically Significant Areas (EBSA). Experts have indicated that these areas are relevant...

Between 2017 and 2019, Fisheries and Oceans Canada conducted a baseline survey of marine fishes and their habitats on the Canadian Beaufort Shelf and slope in August and early September each year. Sampling was conducted from the F/V Frosti at 144 stations along nine multi-year transects, and 32...

The dataset represents known concentration areas of harvested or unharvested Atlantic surfclam (Spisula solidissima) in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, around the Magdalen Islands. The dataset was created for the National environmental emergencies center (NEEC) for preparation and response in case of...

This record contains satellite-sensed chlorophyll-a concentration images of the Canadian Beaufort Sea at 1.1 km resolution. The dataset consists of 276 images, aggregated into two-week composites by calculating the mean value at each pixel, comprising years 1998 through 2020. The dataset spans...

Concentrations of sea pens, small and large gorgonian corals and sponges on the east coast of Canada have been identified through spatial analysis of research vessel survey by-catch data following an approach used by the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization (NAFO) in the Regulatory Area...

The Beluga whale critical habitat, which includes the Upper Estuary, the Saguenay River up to Sainte-Marguerite Bay, and the southern channel of the Lower Estuary, supports the vital functions of calving and rearing of the young. Due to the lack of information, studies are planned in the near...

A novel, bay – scale (i.e. tens of km) survey method was employed to examine algal populations on the southwestern shore of Cape Breton, Canada, for the purposes of potential economic exploitation. Since traditional remote sensing methods were unlikely to be successful in these waters, underwater...

Most of the data were collected during aerial surveys carried out at low tides during June and August 1994-1997, 2000 and 2001. June and August are respectively pupping and moulting seasons, when the haulout sites are intensively used by seals. Features in this layer show the Harbour seal...

This layer details Important Areas (IAs) relevant to key seabird species in the Strait of Georgia (SOG) ecoregion. This data was mapped to inform the selection of marine Ecologically and Biologically Significant Areas (EBSA). Experts have indicated that these areas are relevant based upon their...

A relative exposure index (REI), unweighted fetch, effective fetch, and other fetch-based indices (i.e., sum, minimum) were calculated for the Newfoundland and Labrador (NL) Shelves bioregion. Due to the extensive coastline of the study region, this analysis was conducted for a 5km buffered...

This dataset is comprised of the spatial boundaries for the Port Hawkesbury and Saint John pilot areas within the Oceans Protection Plan - Area Response Plan (ARP) project.

The Fisheries and Oceans Canada ecosystem surveys are conducted annually and are a source of integrated ecosystem monitoring data. These survey data are the primary data source for monitoring trends in species distribution, abundance, and biological condition within the region, and also provide...

This layer represents the relative summer density of belugas in the St. Lawrence Estuary based on 35 aerial surveys carried out from 1990 to 2009. The boundaries of the areas were determined by combining the highest densities until the desired proportion of the population was obtained using...

Nearshore marine construction activities often involve projects conducted directly in or adjacent to eelgrass beds and can have detrimental effects on eelgrass health, through physical destruction of beds, smothering of plants by sediment, and light reduction from turbidity. A liquefied natural...