Fisheries, Subsistence, and Habitat
Publications Searchable Database
Search Again| Division: | Sport Fish |
| Title: | Chinook salmon creel survey and inriver gillnetting study, lower Kenai River, Alaska, 2001. |
| Author: | Reimer, A. M. |
| Year: | 2003 |
| Report ID: | Alaska Department of Fish and Game, Fishery Data Series No. 03-01, Anchorage. |
| Abstract: | A creel survey to estimate angler effort, catch and harvest of chinook salmon Oncorhynchus tshawytscha was conducted on the Kenai River between the Soldotna Bridge and the Warren Ames B ridge from 16 May 2001 through 31 July 2001. For the early run, (May and June) angler effort was 70,203 (SE = 2,693) angler-hours and harvest was 1,428 (SE = 190) chinook salmon. Unguided anglers accounted for 34% of the fishing effort and 10% of the harvest, versus guided anglers who accounted for 66% of the effort and 90% of the harvest. During the early run, most of the recreational harvest and inriver return was age-1.3 and age-1.4 fish. For the late run (July), angler effort was 236,633 (SE = 8,144) angler-hours and harvest was 13,736 (SE = 996) chinook salmon. Unguided anglers accounted for 54% of the effort and 40% of the harvest, versus guided anglers who accounted for 46% of the effort and 60% of harvest. During the late run, most of the recreational harvest and inriver return was age-1.3 and age-1.4 fish. A standardized inriver gillnetting program was conducted near the chinook salmon sonar site from 16 May 2001 through 10 August 2001. Species composition of the catch was used inseason to index relative abundance of chinook vs. sockeye salmon. A small pilot study conducted in August indicated that larger, less size-selective catches could be obtained by changing to nets constructed from a different material, and by adding an additional mesh size. |
| Keywords: | Kenai River, Oncorhynchus tshawytscha, chinook salmon, creel survey, effort, harvest, gillnet. |