Bering Sea Chinook Bycatch Mostly From Western Alaska Rivers
SEAFOODNEWS.COM By Peggy Parker - April 9, 2015
As the North Pacific Fishery Management Council wrestles with salmon bycatch in the Bering Sea and Gulf of Alaska fisheries this week, they will be using a recent report from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game documenting the genetic origins of the Chinook bycatch.
For Chinook caught in the Bering Sea pollock trawl, based on samples taken in 2013, 71% were estimated to be from Alaskan river systems flowing into the Bering Sea. Of that Coastal Western Alaska stock contributed the most (50%), trailed by the North Alaska Peninsula (14%) and the Upper Yukon (5%). Other contributors were British Columbia (16%) and West Coast U.S. (7%).
Results suggest that slightly more Chinook destined for Western Alaska rivers are caught in the pollock “B” season than the “A” season, 52% and 50% respectively. However, 19% of the “A” season Chinook bycatch was tagged as North Alaska Peninsula stocks, compared to almost zero during the “B” season.
The incidental harvest of Chinook salmon...
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