Loddeundersøkelser i Barentshavet vinteren 1978

During the period from 8 January to 4 May four vessels participated in the capelin investigations and the monitoring of the spawning migration. The spawning stock of capelin reached the Norwegian coast about 16 March as two separate influxes, one from the Murman Coast to the Varangerfjord area, and the other from the Skolpen Bank area towards Makkaur on the Varanger peninsula. During the pre-spawning season, mature capelin were to a great extent mixed with young and immature capelin. However, the mature capelin had a marked diurnal vertical migration. During daytime it was located at rather unusual deep water. Due to this it was mostly catched by the vessels with the largest purse seines. The spawning capelin did not appear in as shallow water as usual. The spawning population was dominated by the 1974 year class. Analysis of biological samples showed that spawning had taken place at the eastern Finnmark Coast. However, no eggs were found. The hydrographic conditions were different from the last years. The ice border was located more southerly than usual, and in coastal waters the temperature was on an average l-1.5°C colder than in 1977