Falls Gut Bay And Kutlaku Lakes Subsistence Sockeye Salmon Project 2003 Annual Report And 2001 2003 Final Report

Author : Raymond F. Vinzant
Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 26 pages
Book Rating : 4.:/5 (18 download)

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Download or read book Kanalku Lake Subsistence Sockeye Project written by Raymond F. Vinzant and published by . This book was released on 2018 with total page 26 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The sockeye salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka) run at Kanalku Lake, Southeast Alaska, is the preferred traditional sockeye salmon subsistence stock for the nearby community of Angoon. A stock assessment program was initiated at Kanalku Lake in 2001 in response to community concerns over declining run size and possible overexploitation by local fishermen. Annual spawning escapements were estimated through mark-recapture studies from 2001 to 2006, through a standard picket weir from 2007 to 2014, and through a camera weir from 2015 to 2017. We counted a spawning escapement of 468 sockeye salmon through a double-fence camera weir at the outflow of Kanalku Lake in 2017--the third lowest spawning escapement since stock assessment began in 2001. We also operated a camera weir downstream of Kanalku Falls to estimate the total escapement into the Kanalku system and to estimate the inriver mortality associated with the partial barrier falls. The total escapement into the Kanalku system was 870 sockeye salmon; thus 54% of the inriver run successfully ascended the falls in 2017, an inriver mortality rate of 46%. Sockeye salmon passage rates have not markedly improved since barrier modification work was conducted at the falls in 2013. Inriver passage rates averaged 63% from 2014 to 2017 and ranged from 54% (2017) to 72% (2016); very similar to the passage rates of 49% (2012) and 76% (2013) observed before the barrier modification work was completed. The Kanalku Lake sockeye salmon run has been limited by very small spawning escapements that have produced modest numbers of adult recruits 4-5 years later. Spawning escapements will need to increase substantially if annual runs are expected to improve above the low levels observed since 2001.