Olympic National Park Migration Across Borders: An Overview of the Olympic Peninsula & Salvelinus R. Tabor Sam J. Brenkman NPS-Olympic National Park Port Angeles, WA ScCS August 15, 2012
Topics 1) Peninsula Watersheds & Fish Diversity 2) Overview of Olympic Peninsula Char Complex & Recent Findings 3) Challenges in Conservation & Future Research Needs Pink salmon, Elwha River, J. McMillan
Olympic National Park of Regional Significance in Conservation of Native Fish -30 rivers -~8,000 mi of streams -ONP 922,000 acres
Land Ownership
Diverse Aquatic Habitats
Watersheds Major Watersheds that Originate in ONP Length in Miles Linear Creek Miles Bogachiel 46.5 130 64% Calawah 31.1 196 19% Dosewallips 28.3 170 79% Duckabush 24.1 119 67% Dungeness/Greywolf 32 255 36% Elwha 44.8 488 85% Hamma Hamma 17.8 110 8% Hoh 56.1 312 65% Skokomish 41.9 340 28% Sol Duc 65.2 260 28% Queets 51.4 541 50% Quinault 68.8 559 64% ~Percent of Watershed in OLYM Total 508 miles 3,480 miles
Variable Hydrology Hoh River 80000 70000 >Q2 The frequency of peak flows equal or greater than the 2yr flood has doubled in the last 23 yrs compared to the previous 53 yrs. 100% 90% 60000 80% 50000 70% Q (cfs) 40000 30000 20000 60% 50% 40% C um ulative % 10000 30% 0 20% -10000 10% -20000 0% 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 years From: Tim Abbe
Fish Resources in ONP Comprised of wild, natural, hatchery, and non-native fish. 31 native freshwater fish spp.; 70 populations of Pacific salmonids. 5 federally threatened & 6 non-native fish spp. Bull trout, Dolly Varden, & brook trout. Photo credits: Steve Clark, John Gussman, John McMillan
Variability in Olympic Peninsula Char -Big, small, bright, dark -Diverse in size, morphology, & life histories -Anadromous, adfluvial, fluvial, & resident -Landlocked above waterfalls & dams
-Char distribution (purple) -Spawning areas (yellow)
Evolution of Key Information on Olympic Peninsula Char PRESENCE & DISTRIBUTION: - Speckled beauties (O Neil Expedition, 1890). - Dolly Varden identified in streams (Fishing Guide to the NW 1935). -Landlocked southern Dolly Varden (Cavendar 1978). -Distribution & stock assessments (Mongillo 1992/93; WDFW 1997/98). -USFWS Draft Recovery Plan 2004. LIFE HISTORIES & MIGRATIONS: -Timing & abundance (Brenkman 1998; Brenkman, Larson, & Gresswell 2001). -Movement studies via telemetry (Ogg 2002; ONP). -Anadromy & interbasin migrations (Brenkman & Corbett 2005). -Incidentally caught in commercial fisheries (Brenkman et al. 2007). -Riverscape perspectives 2007-2009 (Brenkman et al. 2012).
Evolution of Information (Cont.) GENETICS: -Sympatric bull trout & Dolly Varden; no hybridization (Leary & Allendorf 1997). -Genetic variation within/among populations (Spruell 2003, 2006; DeHaan et al. 2011). OTHER: -Effects of bedload scour (Shellberg et al. 2010). -Brook trout/bull trout interactions in Elwha (Dunham et al. in prep).
Goal. Determine seasonal & annual trends in fish assemblages from June to September. =5 km reference sites. =Each site is visited every 7-14 d.
Seasonal Trends, N. Fk. Skokomish River Management Trigger
Spawn Timing=Sept. to late Dec.
Spatially Continuous Riverscape Surveys 2007 2008 26 0 687 316 215 118 7,312 3,218 Biological hotspots; guide monitoring;
Spatially Continuous View of Quinault River Bull trout Rainbow/cutthroat trout Summer steelhead Chinook salmon Mountain whitefish
Anadromy as a Primary Life History Form n=27 n=3 n=1 n=7 n=3 n=1 42 of 76 (55%) entered Pacific Ocean 20% of tagged adults relocated in other watersheds
Interbasin Migrations Sep-Nov 03 Dec 03 Aug 03 Apr 03 Dec 03-May 04 May 04? Jun-Oct 04
Otolith Chemistry 1) First seaward migrations at ages 3 to 4. 2) Multiple movements to & from saltwater. 3) Both anadromous & non-anadromous females produced progeny that were anadromous. Otolith Core 1 Laser Transect 2 3 4 760 mm female C Otolith Sr/Ca 4 3.5 3 2.5 2 1.5 1 0.5 0 Otolith Core Freshwater Residence 0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000 Distance (um) Otolith Edge
Dungeness Rivers Inhabited by Anadromous Bull Trout Hoh Elwha Queets Quinault Skokomish
Kalaloch Creek Moclips River Non-natal Rivers Inhabited by Bull Trout Raft River Joe Creek Copalis River
5.5 5 Comparing River & Ocean Life Elwha Bull Trout (non-anadromous) 4.5 4 3.5 Weight (kg) 3 2.5 Hoh River Bull Trout (anadromous) 2 1.5 1 0.5 Hoh Gill Net n=91 Hoh Telemetry n=128 Elwha Telemetry n=95 0 0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 Total Length (mm)
Summary of Olympic Peninsula Salvelinus BULL TROUT: 1) Diverse life history forms; anadromy a primary form. 2) Distributed from headwaters to sea in glacial/snowmelt rivers. 3) Spawn timing September thru December. 4) Irregular periods of freshwater, estuarine, & marine residence consistent with other Salvelinus spp. 5) Interbasin migrations & use non-natal tributaries. 6) Hood Canal & Strait populations critically low. DOLLY VARDEN: 1) Southernmost portion of range & headwater isolation. 2) Co-occur with bull trout; no evidence of hybridization albeit limited sampling. BROOK TROUT: 1) Brook trout occur throughout high lakes in Olympics. 2) Observed in some small streams & a few major rivers.
Conservation Challenges on Olympic Peninsula 140 120 Total Gill Net Days in the Queets River from 11/1-4/26, 1980-2011 100 80 60 40 20 0 1980-81 1981-82 1982-83 1983-84 1984-85 1985-86 1986-87 1987-88 1988-89 1989-90 1990-91 1991-92 1992-93 1993-94 1994-95 1995-96 1996-97 1997-98 1998-99 1999-00 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 2003-04 2004-05 2005-06 2006-07 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 # of Net Days Bull Trout Susceptible to Gill-Net Bycatch Based on: -Timing of river entry from ocean. -Size. -Repeat spawn with multiple migrations to ocean. -Interbasin migrations to other rivers with nets. -4d exemption for take.
Research & Management Needs for Olympic Peninsula Salvelinus Abundance & spawning distribution. Extent & effects of bull trout bycatch. Resumption of anadromy in Elwha. Effects of reintroduced salmonids in Lake Cushman. Further delineate Dolly Varden. Top down brook trout invasions.
ONP may eventually be the means of saving a nucleus of all of our anadromous fishes on the Pacific Coast as present safeguards are entirely inadequate. Arthur S. Einarsen, 1938, Oregon State College. The ONP presents the most involved and in many respects most difficult fish problem of any of our National Parks. David Madsen, 1939, Preliminary Report of the Fish Resources in ONP.
Special Thanks to: NPS, OLYM Kathy Beirne Steve Corbett Pat Crain Josh Geffre Chris Glenney Dick Goin Matt Groce Mike Hanks Cat Hoffman Roger Hoffman Ed Hughes Heidi Hugunin Phil Kennedy Lauren Kerr Dave Shreffler Ian Smith James Starr Anna Torrance Brian Winter NOAA Keith Denton Kris Kloehn John McMillan George Pess Peninsula College Jack Ganzhorn Elwha Tribe Matt Beirne Mel Elofson Mike McHenry Ray Moses Rebecca Paradis Sonny Samson Larry Ward Sol Duc Valley Packers Larry & Sheri Baysinger USFWS Kate Benkert Jeff Chan Pat DeHaan Dan Lantz Tracy Leavy Sedge Neil Roger Peters Shelley Spalding Brad Thompson USGS Jeff Duda Jason Dunham Robert Hoffman Chris Magirl Audrey Taylor Christian Torgersen Ethan Welty Photo Credits Steve Clark WDFW John Gussman Randy Cooper John McMillan Kent Mayer Jeremy Monroe Tyler Ritchie ONP Files Andrew Simmons Jon Preston Roger Tabor WDOE Quinault Indian Nation Bill Armstrong Jim Harrison Tyler Jurasin