Fraser Sockeye Salmon Run Estimate Lowest Since 1893
SEAFOODNEWS.COM [Seafood News] - August 22, 2016
The Fraser River Panel met on Friday to reveiw assessment data and decreased the estimated run size of all four of the Fraser’s sockeye runs to a total sum of 853,000 fish.
“This is the lowest run-size ever estimated since estimates began in 1893,” the Panel’s report stated.
“Returns on the 2016 cycle are typically the lowest of the four-year cycle (average returns 1952, 1956..., 2008, 2012; 3,650,000 fish). Most Fraser sockeye populations are forecast based on spawning escapements in prior brood years (2012 for age 4 fish and 2011 for age 5 fish), and based mostly on the numbers of fish spawning in 2012, the median forecast was expected to be below average for the cycle; 2,271,000 fish.
"The exact reasons why the return fell at the lower end of the forecast range are unknown at this time, but...
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