Author : David Michael Runfola
Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 46 pages
Book Rating : 4.:/5 (111 download)
Book Synopsis Inseason Estimation of Subsistence Salmon Fishing Effort and Harvest in the Lower Kuskokwim River, 2015-2018 by : David Michael Runfola
Download or read book Inseason Estimation of Subsistence Salmon Fishing Effort and Harvest in the Lower Kuskokwim River, 2015-2018 written by David Michael Runfola and published by . This book was released on 2019 with total page 46 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The primary research question of this project concerned whether research agencies can successfully recruit subsistence fishers as collaborators in data collection for an inseason harvest monitoring project in the lower Kuskokwim River, and whether analysis of these data can provide an accurate estimate of subsistence Chinook salmon harvests in season. The principal goal of this project was to inform a process in which managers could develop a new research program in the Kuskokwim River that would provide accurate inseason harvest estimates through similar methods of sampling harvest. In 2015-2018, Alaska Department of Fish and Game Division of Subsistence staff recorded daily subsistence salmon harvest and effort information among a group of fishers from six lower Kuskokwim River communities. Fishing data were analyzed to calculate a total salmon harvest, average drift gillnet fishing duration, average catch per unit effort, and harvest ratio of Chinook salmon to chum and sockeye salmon. Daily sample sizes were too small to develop universal harvest and catch per unit effort estimates for the fishing fleet with statistical significance. However, study results indicate that the research methodology provided opportunities for necessary inseason outreach to communities and individual fishers in a region with a population that relies significantly on Chinook salmon and other salmon species as important sources of food. Division of Subsistence researchers provided opportunities for fishers to participate directly in the management process by recording salmon harvest and effort data and sharing those data with agencies and representative stakeholder groups to inform management decisions. Similar to other prior research, this study demonstrated the value of collaboration between management agencies and rural communities and the benefits of employing subsistence fishers for participation in inseason harvest assessment projects.