The contractor will process herring samples collected in commercial and research herring fisheries. The contractor will be required to process up to 300 herring samples (1 sample = 100 herring). They will obtain the following information when processing the herring: fish length and weight, sex, gonad length and weight, fish maturity and herring scales for ageing. All herring samples will be processed using the report "Procedures for Collecting and Processing British Columbia Herring Samples" (Canadian Manuscript Report Fisheries Aquatic Science: 2030: 27 p) as the scientific document detailing sampling procedures or as directed by the Project Authority. This data will be entered into a MS Access database provided to the contractor by the Project Authority. Subsequently these sources of data are compiled and used as the information on mean weight-at-age and catch-at-age data that are the essential input data for the annual stock assessment model for BC herring.
