Spawning Escapement Of Chinook Salmon In The Stikine River 2022 2024 PDF Download

This plan describes the coded-wire-tagging of juvenile Chinook salmon Oncorhynchus tshawytscha on the Unuk River for the 2021 and 2022 brood years, which covers the coded-wire-tagging of parr in fall of 2022 and 2023 and smolt in spring of 2023 and 2024, and sampling returning adults for age, sex, length, and coded wire tags in escapement from the 2024 through 2029 return years. This study provides estimates of smolt and parr abundance, overwinter (freshwater) survival, mean lengths of juveniles, and harvest information of Chinook salmon originating from the Unuk River in Southeast Alaska. A separate project will be conducted on the Unuk River that employs aerial and foot survey peak counts to estimate large (≥ 660 mm mid eye to fork of tail length) adult Chinook salmon returning to the river in 2022 and 2023. The primary goals of this and the companion study are to estimate inriver run size, total run size, marine harvest and exploitation rates, harvest distribution, smolt and parr abundance, marine survival (smolt to adult) and overwinter survival (parr to smolt). The Alaska Department of Fish and Game uses this information to make local and regional management decisions and to evaluate the Unuk River Chinook salmon escapement goal, and the Pacific Salmon Commission uses the data for coastwide management and stock assessment through the Chinook Technical Committee.