Salmon
Southwest Alaska Network. 2020. Salmon. Southwest Alaska Network
Sockeye salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka) are an important cultural, economic, and ecological resource in Alaska, particularly in the Bristol Bay region of southwest Alaska. Each year, up to 60 million sockeye salmon migrate back to Bristol Bay to spawn and 60-75% of these returning adults are harvested by commercial fisheries. What enables such high harvest rates year after year? Consistent management and monitoring of salmon returns by the State of Alaska is part of the answer. But research suggests that this level of harvest would not be sustainable without the mosaic of intact freshwater habitats upstream of the fishery. Diverse intact habitats foster genetically diverse salmon populations with asynchronous highs and lows in returns—a quality that increases overall resilience of the resource.
- Type
- Resource Brief
- Authors
- Southwest Alaska Network
- Date of Issue
- 2020-03
- Publisher
- Southwest Alaska Network
- Units
- ALAG , KATM , KEFJ , LACL , SWAN
- Keywords
- escapement, harvest, Oncorhynchus nerka, salmon, sockeye
- Subjects
- Ecological Framework: Biological Integrity | Focal Species or Communities | Fishes , Ecological Framework: Human Use | Consumptive Use | Consumptive Use