Fraser River Sockeye Salmon Oncorhynchus Nerka (Steller, 1743) in Relation to Marine Ecology
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February 2011 technical report 4 The Decline of Fraser River Sockeye Salmon Oncorhynchus nerka (Steller, 1743) in Relation to Marine Ecology The Cohen Commission of Inquiry Stewart M. McKinnell, Enrique Curchitser, Cornelius Groot, Masahide Kaeriyama and into the Decline of Sockeye Salmon in the Fraser River Katherine W. Myers The Decline of Fraser River Sockeye Salmon Oncorhynchus nerka (Steller, 1743) in Relation to Marine Ecology Stewart M. McKinnell1, Enrique Curchitser2, Cornelius Groot3, Masahide Kaeriyama4 and Katherine W. Myers5 1 North Pacific Marine Science Organization (PICES), c/o Institute of Ocean Sciences, P.O. Box 6000, Sidney, BC V8L 4B2 2 Institute of Marine and Coastal Sciences, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ, USA 3 Gabriola Island, BC 4 Graduate School of Fisheries, Hokkaido University, Hakodate, Japan 5 School of Aquatic and Fisheries Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA Technical Report 4 February 2011 Recommended citation for this report: McKinnell, S.M., E. Curchitser, C. Groot, M. Kaeriyama and K.W. Myers. 2011. The decline of Fraser River sockeye salmon Oncorhynchus nerka (Steller, 1743) in relation to marine ecology. PICES Advisory Report. Cohen Commission Tech. Rept. 4: 195p. Vancouver, B.C. www.cohencommission.ca Preface Fraser River sockeye salmon are vitally important for Canadians. Aboriginal and non-aboriginal communities depend on sockeye for their food, social, and ceremonial purposes; recreational pursuits; and livelihood needs. Fraser sockeye are key components of freshwater and marine aquatic ecosystems. Events over the past century have shown that the Fraser sockeye salmon resource is fragile and vulnerable to human impacts such as rock slides, industrial activities, anthropogenic-induced climatic change, fisheries policies and fishing. Fraser sockeye are also subject to natural environmental variations and population cycles that strongly influence survival and production. In 2009, the decline of sockeye salmon stocks in the Fraser River in British Columbia led to the closure of the fishery for the third consecutive year, despite favourable pre-season estimates of the number of sockeye salmon expected to return to the river. The 2009 return marked a decline that could be traced back two decades. In November 2009, the Governor General in Council appointed Justice Bruce Cohen as a Commissioner under Part I of the Inquiries Act to investigate this decline of sockeye salmon in the Fraser River. In spite of the declining trend, in 2010 Fraser sockeye experienced an extraordinary rebound, demonstrating their capacity to produce at historic levels. The extreme year-to-year variability in Fraser sockeye returns bears directly on the scientific work of the Commission. Seeking a better understanding of the factors that affect Fraser River sockeye salmon abundance, the Commission engaged independent experts to undertake 12 research projects: Project 1 Diseases and parasites 2 Effects of contaminants on Fraser River sockeye salmon 3 Fraser River freshwater ecology and status of sockeye Conservation Units 4 Marine ecology 5 Impacts of salmon farms on Fraser River sockeye salmon 6 Data synthesis and cumulative impact analysis 7 Fraser River sockeye fisheries harvesting and fisheries management 8 Effects of predators on Fraser River sockeye salmon 9 Effects of climate change on Fraser River sockeye salmon 10 Fraser River sockeye production dynamics 11 Fraser River sockeye salmon – status of DFO science and management 12 Sockeye habitat analysis in the Lower Fraser River and the Strait of Georgia Researchers undertook the projects and analysed the contribution of their topic area to the decline in Fraser sockeye production. The researchers’ draft reports were peer-reviewed and were finalized in early 2011. Reviewer comments are appended to the present report, one of the reports in the Cohen Commission Technical Report Series. PICES Advisory Report on The Decline of Fraser River Sockeye Salmon Oncorhynchus nerka (Steller, 1743) in Relation to Marine Ecology December 15, 2010 North Pacific Marine Science Organization Authors Stewart M. McKinnell Deputy Executive Secretary North Pacific Marine Science Organization North Saanich, B.C., Canada Enrique Curchitser Associate Research Professor Institute of Marine and Coastal Sciences Rutgers University New Brunswick, NJ, United States of America Cornelius Groot Research Scientist (emeritus) Gabriola Island, B.C., Canada Masahide Kaeriyama Professor Graduate School of Fisheries Hokkaido University Hakodate, Japan Katherine W. Myers Principal Investigator, High Seas Salmon Research School of Aquatic and Fisheries Sciences University of Washington Seattle, WA, United States of America iii Table of Contents A Executive Summary...................................................................................................................ix B Fraser River Sockeye Salmon in the Ocean ............................................................................. 1 1 Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Motivation .................................................................................................................. 1 1.2 Authorship – North Pacific Marine Science Organization ......................................... 2 1.3 Organization of the Report ........................................................................................ 2 1.4 Research Directed at Salmon in the Ocean.............................................................. 4 1.5 General Biology......................................................................................................... 5 1.5.1 Life cycle of sockeye salmon ....................................................................... 6 1.5.2 Spawning behaviour..................................................................................... 8 1.5.3 Migrations and habitat changes ................................................................... 9 1.5.4 Ecotypes..................................................................................................... 10 1.5.5 Production cycles ....................................................................................... 11 2 Postsmolt Year..................................................................................................................13 2.1 Postsmolt Migration Route ...................................................................................... 13 2.2 Postsmolt Migration Timing..................................................................................... 18 2.3 Postsmolt Migration Speed ..................................................................................... 22 2.4 Factors Affecting Postsmolt Migration Behaviour ................................................... 23 2.5 Postsmolt Feeding................................................................................................... 23 2.6 Postsmolt Growth.................................................................................................... 25 2.6.1 Strait of Georgia ......................................................................................... 25 2.6.2 Continental shelf......................................................................................... 29 3 Beyond the Continental Margin......................................................................................... 31 3.1 Distribution and Migration........................................................................................ 31 3.2 Behaviour ................................................................................................................ 36 3.3 Feeding.................................................................................................................... 38 3.4 Growth..................................................................................................................... 40 3.4.1 Density-dependent growth (intra-specific).................................................. 41 3.5 Thermal Limits to Oceanic Distribution ................................................................... 43 3.5.1 Sockeye salmon in waters exceeding thermal limits.................................. 44 3.5.2 Global climate model projections ............................................................... 48 v 4 Maturation and Migration .................................................................................................. 51 4.1 Distribution of Maturing Fraser River Sockeye Salmon .......................................... 51 4.2 Diet and Feeding of Maturing Fraser River Sockeye Salmon................................. 52 4.3 Growth of Maturing Fraser River Sockeye Salmon................................................. 55 4.3.1 Average size at age.................................................................................... 55 4.3.2 Trends ........................................................................................................ 57 4.3.3 Density-dependent growth (intra-specific).................................................. 59 4.3.4 Density-dependent growth (inter-specific).................................................. 61 4.4 Migration Behaviour and Timing ............................................................................. 65 4.4.1 Depth of migration...................................................................................... 65 4.4.2 Migration timing.........................................................................................