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Division: Sport Fish
Title: Chinook salmon creel survey and inriver gillnetting study, Lower Kenai River, Alaska, 2012
Author: Perschbacher, J.
Year: 2014
Report ID: Alaska Department of Fish and Game, Fishery Data Series No. 14-37, Anchorage.
Abstract: A creel survey to estimate angler effort, catch, and harvest of early- and late-run Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) was conducted on the Kenai River between the Soldotna Bridge and the Warren Ames Bridge from 16 May through 21 June and 1 July through 18 July in 2012. The early-run sport fishery was closed to harvest of Chinook salmon 20–55 inches total length (TL) from 15 June through 21 June and was closed to all sport fishing for Chinook salmon 22 June through 30 June by emergency order(s). The late-run sport fishery was closed to harvest of Chinook salmon 20–55 inches TL from 10 July through 18 July and was closed to all sport fishing for Chinook salmon 19 July through 31 July. A standardized inriver gillnetting program was conducted to estimate species catch rates and species composition near the Chinook salmon sonar site from 16 May through 15 August 2012. During the early run (16 May–21 June), anglers caught 471 (SE 109) and harvested 316 (SE 93) Chinook salmon with 20,681 (SE 1,483) angler-hours of effort. Guided anglers accounted for 65% of effort and 73% of harvest; the remaining effort and harvest were unguided. The estimated age composition of harvested Chinook salmon during the early run was 2.6% (SE 2.6%) age-1.2 fish, 23.7% (SE 7.0%) age-1.3 fish, and 73.7% (SE 7.2%) age-1.4 fish, compared to the estimated age composition of Chinook salmon passage at the sonar site of 4.9% (SE 2.4%) age-1.1 fish, 8.5% (SE 3.1%) age-1.2 fish, 35.4% (SE 5.3%) age-1.3 fish, 50.0% (SE 5.6%) age-1.4 fish, and 1.2% (SE 1.2%) age-1.5 fish. During the early run, 104 Chinook salmon and 934 sockeye salmon were captured in the inriver gillnetting program near the Chinook salmon sonar site; the ratio of Chinook salmon catch per unit effort (CPUE) to all species CPUE averaged 0.15. During the late run (1–18 July) it was estimated that anglers caught 1,250 (SE 160) and harvested 103 (SE 52) Chinook salmon with 32,354 (SE 2,671) angler-hours of effort. Guided anglers accounted for 63% of effort and 57% of harvest; the remaining effort and harvest were unguided. Due to low run strength and fishery restrictions during the late-run sport fishery, the sample size goal was not met to estimate the age composition of harvested Chinook salmon. The estimated age composition of the late-run (1 July–15 August) Chinook salmon passage at the sonar site was 1.7% (SE 0.9%) age-1.1 fish, 9.9% (SE 2.0%) age-1.2 fish, 40.1% (SE 3.2%) age-1.3 fish, 44.4% (SE 3.3%) age-1.4 fish, and 3.9% (SE 1.3%) age-1.5 fish. During the late run, 472 Chinook salmon, 3,548 sockeye salmon, 77 coho salmon, 3 pink salmon, and 6 Dolly Varden were captured in the inriver gillnetting program; the ratio of Chinook salmon CPUE to all species CPUE averaged 0.08.
Keywords: Kenai River, Oncorhynchus tshawytscha, Chinook salmon, creel survey, effort, harvest, gillnet, CPUE, age composition.