Bay of Quinte Fish Spawning Habitat Suitability 1972-2011

1972-2011 habitat suitability maps model spawning habitat for high vegetation association fish species in the Bay of Quinte. The data, produced by Fisheries and Oceans Canada using the Habitat Ecosystem Assessment Tool (HEAT), assigns suitability scores from 0 to 1 across a 3-meter grid resolution. Final maps represent maximum suitability values over the 39-year modeled period.

Use Cases

• Train geospatial models to predict habitat suitability scores (0-1) based on depth, vegetation, and substrate variables.
• Analyze long-term trends in spawning habitat availability for high vegetation association species using the 39-year time series.
• Validate temperature suitability algorithms by comparing modeled outputs with documented fish habitat associations for the area.
• Perform spatial analysis of 'high' suitability class distributions within the Bay of Quinte Area of Concern at 3m resolution.

Strengths

• 39-year temporal coverage (1972-2011) provides a long-term perspective on habitat changes.
• High spatial resolution of 3-meter grid cells for detailed geospatial analysis.
• Suitability values are derived from documented habitat and temperature associations for local fish species.
• Data includes multiple suitability classes (very low, low, medium, high) for categorical analysis.

Limitations

• Data is specific to one water level scenario (Average Water Level at 75.0m ASL) and one vegetation association (High).
• Model outputs represent maximum suitability over 39 years, not annual time-series data, limiting temporal granularity.
• The focus on spawning habitat for a specific guild may not generalize to other life stages or species groups.

Provenance

Source

Fisheries and Oceans Canada

Collection Method

Modeled using the Habitat Ecosystem Assessment Tool (HEAT) with temperature algorithms, vegetation models, and water level inputs.

Time Range

1972-2011

Freshness

Data last updated March 2026, but models historical conditions up to 2011.

Geography

Bay of Quinte Area of Concern, Canada