Juvenile chum migration patterns in the lower Columbia River and estuary

Transcription

1 Juvenile chum migration patterns in the lower Columbia River and estuary Curtis Roegner Dan Bottom Kristen Homel Thanks to the many NOAA and CE colleagues! * Columbia River Estuary Workshop 214 *

2 Collapse of the CR chum Historic annual run >1.3 million fish; today < 15 k Historic distribution: CR mouth to Walla Walla River But concentrated below Celillo Falls (near The Dalles dam) Present pattern: limited number of spawning locations on Washington side: Grays River In main stem CR near I-25 and below Bonneville Dam Some returns to Cowlitz & Lewis Rivers and elsewhere Functionally extirpated from Oregon side (probably < 1 k / yr). At present, renewed emphasis on chum spawning habitat restoration in both WA and OR Small, M. P., K. Homel, and C. Bowman Genetic assignments of Oregon chum salmon Oncorhynchus keta in the Columbia River estuary Count Year Bonneville

3 OUTLINE

4 OUTLINE 1. Population status (compared to other salmonids & fish species) 2. Life history characteristics 3. Migration patterns (timing, size & distribution) Main stem estuarine & TFW habitats Grays River restoration wetland Mark recapture 4. Conclusions

5 LCRE sampling sites Lower Estuary Middle Upper Tidal freshwater Grays River Ocean & Plume WSI CS PAB PE UCC LES ETI Lord Is Cathlamet Bay Wallace Is Studies Spatial and temporal scales 1. Estuary beach seine &Trap net 2. Grays River studies 3. Estuary purse seine 4. Migration studies Timeline 22-27: monthly; PAB 21-pres , 213

6 Salmonid diversity Estuary Salinity zones % 1.% 79.9% 18.2% 1.5% 34.8% TFW Species Estuary TFW Total Chinook Chum Coho Steelhead Chinook Chum Coho Steelhead Cutthroat Sockeye 96.7% 2.1%.8% Cutthroat Sockeye Total

7 River Mouth Fish community at estuarine beach seine sites Clatsop Spit West Sand Island 5.% 5.% 2.4% Pt. Adams Beach 3.3% Pt. Elice Spatial variation along salinity gradient Chum Salmon <1-5% of catch Chum more abundant on Washington side Chum Anchovey Chinook Starry flounder 4.% Smelt Staghorn Oregon <1% 2.5% Washington English sole Herring Sand sole Shiner perch Stickleback Incidental

8 Abundance and size-frequency Frequency Chinook Year-round distribution Feb-Aug peak ~2 % fry Remainder are fingerlings & yearlings 6 4 log CPUE Chum Narrow peak Mar-Apr Absent > May ~85 % fry Max size 85 mm Jan Feb Mar AprMay Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Day of year Length (mm)

9 Spatial variation of chum size-frequency Frequency of occurrence (%) 3 Oregon side CS WSI n= 15 n= 326 Washington side PAB PE n= 248 n= Cumulative Frequency (%) Fork length (mm)

10 Main channel vs shallow water salmon species Salmonid species distribution Shoreline Channel Chinook-subyrlg Chinook-yrlg Chum Coho Sockeye Steelhead Cutthroat trout stipple indicates yearling life-histrory Area ~ 4 m 2 Area ~ 185 m2 G.C. Roegner 1, L.A. Weitkamp 2, D.J. Teel 3. In Prep. Finescale variation in habitat use by juvenile salmonids in the Columbia River estuary.

11 Catch standardized by area Density ( ind / 1 3 m 2 ) 1 4 Subyearling Chinook salmon Chum Yearling Chinook salmon Coho Day of year 1 3 Chum Densities higher in shallow water Salmon larger in channel Day of year

12 Migration patterns of chum salmon in restored marsh habitat

13 Variation in life histories and migration patterns Fork length (mm) Chinook Chum Coho Yearlings Fin clipped subyearlings Unclipped subyearlings J F M A M J J A Hatchery releases J F M A M J J A Day of year Yearlings Hatchery release Subyearlings J F M A M J J A Chinook Chum Coho Year First Last Length First Last Length First Last Length 26* mean sd

14 Chum migration Grays Bay WA GRAYS BAY DEEP RIVER To GR hatchery 46. COLUMBIA RIVER x DR net pen OR KTN SEAL SLOUGH JTN GRAYS RIVER DRTN GRAYS BAY GRAYS BAY

15 Chum distribution DEEP RIVER x X To GR hatchery Day of year 1 X KTN DRTN GRAYS BAY X JTN X GRAYS RIVER X

16 Frequency (%) Frequency (%) Size frequency comparison Grays River N= Cumulative (%) Fork length (mm) CRE Cumulative (%) Fork length (mm)

17 Tagged chum release study Location of chum fry 2 days after release PAB Cathlamet Bay Big Creek Hatchery

18 Genetic assignment of non-tagged chum Stratum # Gorge 66 Cascade Coastal 16 Pacific Coast 1 Unassigned 6 Length comparison of chum fry from Gorge and Coastal Strata 12 1 Gorge stratum lengths Coastal stratum lengths Number of individuals Fork length Small, M. P., K. Homel, and C. Bowman Genetic assignments of Oregon chum salmon Oncorhynchus keta in the Columbia River estuary

19 LCRE sampling sites Lower Estuary Middle Upper Tidal freshwater Grays River Ocean & Plume WSI CS PAB PE UCC LES ETI Lord Is Cathlamet Bay Wallace Is

20 Lord & Wallace Abundance Abundance and size in reaches A-C Size Size =.22 x DOY r ² = CPUE Puget Is BS Kandoll Farm TN Cathlamet Bay TN 1 2 Size =.24 x DOY r ² =.58 Size =.8 * DOY r ² =.28 Size =.16 x DOY r ² = Mean size Consistent end to the migration, but earliest abundance in the estuary Highest abundance in estuary & Grays Bay, < 1 fish /haul elsewhere Positive size x time slopes at all stations except GB. Growth Largest size and highest size range in estuary. Accumulation? Estuary 1 2 Size =.21 x DOY+ 29. r ² = J F M A M J Day of year J F M A M J Day of year

21 PAB time series 1 CPUE Interannual variation in both abundance and maximum size Mean length (mm) Year

22 Summary Juvenile chum salmon are mostly fry migrants They peak in April May and are gone by June Concentrated in shallow water Higher numbers in the estuary than tidal freshwater zones and on the Washington side Migration from natal streams can be rapid...but larger chum found the estuary, indicating residency and growth. Osmotic issue? Chum genetics indicates upstream strata represented in Cathlamet Bay Restoration recommendations Maintain shallow water habitat tgo aid outmigration RESTORE SPAWNING HABITAT! Especially in historically important areas like Youngs Bay

23 What is the rest of the chum world doing? MSI/msi_me_csrd.htm

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