Fisheries, Subsistence, and Habitat
Publications Searchable Database
Search Again| Division: | Sport Fish |
| Title: | Karluk River steelhead population assessment, 2017–2019. |
| Author: | Polum, T. B., and A. Reimer. |
| Year: | 2021 |
| Report ID: | Alaska Department of Fish and Game, Fishery Data Series No. 21-14, Anchorage. |
| Abstract: | The Karluk River steelhead (Oncorhynchus mykiss) population was studied between 2017 and 2019. In 2017 and 2018, age, sex, and length information were collected from steelhead at 2 points in their life history: spawning (steelhead) and emigration (kelts). Steelhead were sampled near holding and spawning areas within the Karluk River drainage before, during, and after the annual spawning event. Kelts were also counted at the Karluk River weir near Karluk Lagoon, and a fraction of those counted were sampled. In 2017, age was determined for 60 steelhead and 345 kelts. In 2018, age was determined for 114 steelhead and 154 kelts. In 2019, a mark–recapture experiment was implemented by tagging fish during the spawning area sampling event and recovering tags passing through the weir during emigration. In 2019, 133 steelhead were sampled and tagged, and 49 tagged fish were recovered at the Karluk River weir among 2,877 kelts. The abundance of Karluk River steelhead during this spawning event was estimated to be 7,952 (95% CI 7,451–9,666). Spawning survival was 37% (95% CI 29–45%). |
| Keywords: | steelhead, Oncorhynchus mykiss, mark–recapture, abundance, Karluk River, age-sex-length |