Assist Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) in determining the extent to which genetic introgression exists between Snake River hatchery steelhead straying into the John Day Basin and the local ESA-listed summer steelhead, and to verify the existing Technical Recovery Team (TRT) population designations within the John Day system. Results of this research will be used to inform the management and conservation of John Day River Basin steelhead. Genetics.

Assist Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) in determining the extent to which genetic introgression exists between Snake River hatchery steelhead straying into the John Day Basin and the local ESA-listed summer steelhead, and to verify the existing Technical Recovery Team (TRT) population designations within the John Day system. Results of this research will be used to inform the management and conservation of John Day River Basin steelhead. Genetics.

Tag juvenile Columbia River steelhead in the Columbia estuary with acoustic tags to determine their marine distributions. This was a small pilot project to test our ability to 1) use fish collected by the Columbia Estuary Purse Seine project as a source for tagging, 2) use a mobile tagging station to tag 100 fish, and 3) perhaps get some detections at various fixed and mobile receivers in estuarine and marine waters. While many fish were detected leaving the estuary, only one was detected in marine waters off Willapa Bay. Since this is a pilot project, no reports were produced. Field data fisheries independent survey. This project was foronly 1 year and no longer exists.

The goals of this study are to develop methods to reduce wandering and straying of steelhead (Oncorhynchus mykiss) that are collected and barged from the Snake River to below Bonneville Dam. Salmon and steelhead that stray and spawn in non-natal streams are a significant conservation concern, because they may confound accurate assessment of the VSP parameters of recovering native populations and decrease the productivity of these populations through genetic introgression or ecological competition. These issues are a particular concern for listed mid-Columbia River stocks because salmon that are collected and barged downstream as juveniles have shown higher stray rates into these watersheds as returning adults relative to in-river migrants. However, while barging may contribute to elevated stray rates, there are substantial benefits from barging because transported Snake River steelhead consistently have higher smolt-to-adult returns than steelhead left to migrate in-river. Therefore, it is important to identify and develop strategies for reducing the stray rates of transported steelhead while maintaining the survival benefits consistently observed for barged steelhead. The specific aims of this proposal are as follows: 1) Conduct an analysis of existing coded wire (CWT) and PIT tag data to identify causative factors associated with straying by Columbia River salmonids, particularly as it relates to natural rates of straying and straying associated with transport. 2) Assess imprinting of barged and in-river migrants by monitoring imprinting associated changes in physiological function and gene expression as indicators of imprinting success. 3) Identify key environmental parameters (e.g. orienting current, water exchange rate, novel tributary water) that are important for imprinting barged fish and develop barging protocols to optimize imprinting success and thereby minimize straying using a controlled laboratory study. 4) Initiate tests of a modified barge protocol designed to maintain survival benefits while reducing wandering, delay, and straying behavior of returning adults. The work is being conducted by NWFSC scientists in collaboration with the University of Washington. Products for this project will include annual reports, peer-reviewed publications, presentation of results at local and national meetings, and consultation with the FCRPS managers. Physiological and field data on barged and in-river migrant steelhead.

The goals of this study are to develop methods to reduce wandering and straying of steelhead (Oncorhynchus mykiss) that are collected and barged from the Snake River to below Bonneville Dam. Salmon and steelhead that stray and spawn in non-natal streams are a significant conservation concern, because they may confound accurate assessment of the VSP parameters of recovering native populations and decrease the productivity of these populations through genetic introgression or ecological competition. These issues are a particular concern for listed mid-Columbia River stocks because salmon that are collected and barged downstream as juveniles have shown higher stray rates into these watersheds as returning adults relative to in-river migrants. However, while barging may contribute to elevated stray rates, there are substantial benefits from barging because transported Snake River steelhead consistently have higher smolt-to-adult returns than steelhead left to migrate in-river. Therefore, it is important to identify and develop strategies for reducing the stray rates of transported steelhead while maintaining the survival benefits consistently observed for barged steelhead. The specific aims of this proposal are as follows: 1) Conduct an analysis of existing coded wire (CWT) and PIT tag data to identify causative factors associated with straying by Columbia River salmonids, particularly as it relates to natural rates of straying and straying associated with transport. 2) Assess imprinting of barged and in-river migrants by monitoring imprinting associated changes in physiological function and gene expression as indicators of imprinting success. 3) Identify key environmental parameters (e.g. orienting current, water exchange rate, novel tributary water) that are important for imprinting barged fish and develop barging protocols to optimize imprinting success and thereby minimize straying using a controlled laboratory study. 4) Initiate tests of a modified barge protocol designed to maintain survival benefits while reducing wandering, delay, and straying behavior of returning adults. The work is being conducted by NWFSC scientists in collaboration with the University of Washington. Products for this project will include annual reports, peer-reviewed publications, presentation of results at local and national meetings, and consultation with the FCRPS managers. Physiological data on hatchery-reared steelhead.

The Northwest Fisheries Science Center's (NWFSC) Salmon Population Summary (SPS) database provides public access to demographic data compiled for ESA-listed salmonid populations as part of the NWFSC's technical recovery planning efforts. The database contains data collected by co-managers (WDFW, ODFW, IDFG, and Tribes) and compiled in cooperation with NWFSC staff for: spawning abundance, age structure of wild spawners, fraction of natural spawners that are of wild origin, and the reduction in spawning abundance due to harvest. For some populations, additional data fields are also available. Abundance of ESA-listed salmonids.

This research was initiated by the Puget Sound Steelhead Technical Recovery Team to develop viability criteria for threatened Puget Sound steelhead and to support recovery planning of this species. It involves conventional population viability analysis (PVA) combined with decision support systems such as Bayesian Networks. These systems are parameterized with information on abundance, productivity, spatial structure, and diversity obtained from various sources, including PVAs of individual populations from time-series data of abundance, productivity, age structure, iteroparity, influence of resident fish on anadromous abundance, and influence of human activities such as hatchery production, harvest, and habitat alteration. The work will also focus on assessing status of these listed species every five years as part of NOAA Fisheries' coastwide status review updates for listed salmonids. These data will be outputs from life cycle models developed by the Puget Sound steehead recovery team to evaluate.

The Northwest Fisheries Science Center's (NWFSC) Salmon Population Summary (SPS) database provides public access to demographic data compiled for ESA-listed salmonid populations as part of the NWFSC's technical recovery planning efforts. The database contains data collected by co-managers (WDFW, ODFW, IDFG, and Tribes) and compiled in cooperation with NWFSC staff for: spawning abundance, age structure of wild spawners, fraction of natural spawners that are of wild origin, and the reduction in spawning abundance due to harvest. For some populations, additional data fields are also available. The data correspond to the populations identified by the NMFS Technical Recovery Teams, and are used in part to assess population and ESU-level recovery criteria for many listed ESUs. Most importantly, this data is critical for informing 5 year ESA salmon reviews, and makes 5 year status review data available to the public. Abundance of ESA-listed salmonids.

The Strait of Juan de Fuca Intensively Monitored Watershed (IMW) began in 2004 to test the watershed-scale response of steelhead and coho salmon to watershed restoration. The Strait IMW includes two treatment watersheds (East Twin River and Deep Creek) and one control watershed (West Twin River). Restoration treatments included LWD placement, road and culvert removal, off-channel habitat creation, and riparian planting. Monitoring of physical habitat as well as coho and steelhead parr densities began in 2004 using the EPA’s EMAP site selection and sampling protocols. Smolt and adult monitoring predates the IMW program and began as early as 1998 in some watersheds. Preliminary results suggest an increase in pool habitat and small increases in steelhead adults and smolts in East Twin River, as well as adult coho in Deep Creek. PIT tagging has revealed a large outmigration of age-0 coho in the fall that contributes to the adult return, stream swapping by juveniles, and varying return times for coho adults. Current research has answered a portion of our original questions and has raised new ones. Restoration treatments were completed fairly recently or are still in progress. As habitat typically does not respond immediately to treatment, additional years of monitoring are needed to determine watershed-scale fish response. Moving forward, analysis of otoliths to validate PIT tag data and new restoration methods such as carcass or nutrient enhancement may be merited. PIT tagging and habitat data. Includes fish weight, length, location, and PIT tag number. Habitat data includes wood measurements and stream surveys.

Sablefish (Anoplopoma fimbria) have a wide distribution along the Pacific coast, extending from Baja California to Alaska, the Bering Sea and through to the eastern coast of Japan. A unique feature of these fish is the wide variation in temperature and depth that sablefish experience throughout their life cycle, extending from depths 200m as adults to the surface as larvae and juveniles. While the landed weight of sablefish in the commercial fishery is relatively small, the exceptionally high value of this species ranks it 3rd in economic value to walleye pollock and Pacific cod. As such, sablefish are highly managed throughout the Pacific, and understanding the biology of this species is essential for proper management. The aim of this project is to characterize the reproductive life history of two populations of sablefish in coastal Washington and California. Fish will be collected from the same geographical location on a monthly basis for one year. The reproductive status will be determined from gonadal histology and plasma sex steroid levels, and age will be determined from otoliths. It is expected that data on size, age, rate of gonadal development, seasonal timing of spawning, fecundity, frequency of reproduction, and potential shifts in distribution of sexes will be obtained. This study applies directly to the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Reauthorization Act, because the data will be used to improve stock assessments and estimates of spawning biomass in this commercially important species. This project is a cooperation with the commercial fishing industry and scientists at the Northwest Fisheries Science Center (NWFSC) and Southwest Fisheries Science Center (SWFSC). Size, sex, gonad stage, fecundity.