| ID |
2928 |
| Citation |
Welch, D.W.; Lydersen, H.; Porter, A.D.; Neaga, L.; Muirhead, Y. (2010) Acoustic Telemetry Measurements of Survival and Movements of Adult Steelhead (Oncorhynchus mykiss) within the Bulkley River, 2009, Kintama Research Corporation, Final Report to the B.C. Ministry of the Environment, 47 pages. |
| Organization |
Ministry of the Environment |
| URL |
http://salmonwatersheds.ca/library/lib_b_251/ |
| Abstract/Description or Keywords |
The Moricetown Canyon on the Bulkley River is the site of 95 yearly steelhead (Oncorhynchus mykiss) mark-recapture studies done by Wet’suwet’en Fisheries. In 2008, a pilot scale acoustic telemetry study was conducted where adult steelhead were tagged with acoustic tags and released back into the river along side fish used the annual mark-recapture study. A drop back rate of 18% was measured for acoustically tagged adult steelhead (we define “drop-back” as fish going downstream after release, rather than continuing to migrate upstream past the recapture site, as conventionally assumed). In 2009, the acoustic study was expanded in Moricetown Canyon, and drop back rates were assessed more closely. In summer 2009, an array was designed and deployed in the Bulkley River system by Kintama Research, with the assistance of a local river guide. Twelve acoustic receivers were deployed in the Bulkley River on 10-12 July 2009 and 67 returning wild steelhead were subsequently tagged with individually identifiable Vemco V9-2H acoustic tags. One fish was harvested and therefore omitted from the data analysis (n=66). Fish were released from 5 August to 24 September at two collection sites: (a) the beach seine site immediately below the Moricetown Canyon and (b) the dip-net site located at the Moricetown Canyon falls. We recovered all receivers between the 9-11 November 2009, approximately four months later. Over the deployment period, a total of 38,808 detections were recorded from 63 of the 66 tagged adult steelhead. Key findings of the 2009 Bulkley River study: Only between 56 and 59% of fish passed the recapture site during active recapture efforts (excludes: Fish that remained below (33%), undetected tagged fish (5%), and fish passing recapture site after the recapture efforts were terminated (3-6%)). 2009 drop-back rate (<0.7 km): 83% of all tagged fish (n=66) .Š2009 drop-back rate (<11 km): 35% of all tagged fish (18% in 2008). Average time from release to passing the Moricetown Canyon recapture site (300 m upstream of release): 13.5 days (range: 0.9-52.5 days). Twenty-two (33%) of all tagged steelhead remained below the Moricetown Canyon release site and were never exposed to recapture at the recapture site. Between two to four (3-6%) of the tagged steelhead passed the recapture site after termination of the recapture effort and were never exposed to recapture at the dipnet site. This evidence coupled with the extensive movements that a substantial proportion of the tagged steelhead made downstream and then upstream past the release site is potentially of major importance for the interpretation of data from the Moricetown mark-recapture analysis. |
| Information Type |
Report |
| Regional Watershed |
Bulkley River |
| Sub-watershed if known |
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