Research Document 2017/024
Status of Atlantic Salmon (Salmo salar L.) stocks within the Newfoundland and Labrador Region (Salmon Fishing Areas 1-14B), 2014
By Robertson, M.J., Bradbury, I., Cochrane, N.M., Dempson, J.B., Grant, C., Kelly, N., Poole, R., and Veinott, G.I.
Abstract
In 2014, Atlantic Salmon populations were monitored on 14 rivers in Newfoundland and Labrador (NL; Salmon Fishing Areas [SFAs] 1-14B). Returns of small and large salmon decreased compared to the previous generation mean on three of the four (75%) assessed rivers in Labrador and five of 10 (50%) rivers in Newfoundland. Conservation egg requirements were not achieved on three of the four (75%) monitored rivers in Labrador and five of the 10 (50%) rivers in Newfoundland. Atlantic Salmon harvests in 2014 were 12,944 salmon in the subsistence/Food, Social, and Ceremonial (FSC) fisheries, and 24,120 retained salmon (plus 25,001 released salmon) in the recreational fishery. Salmon returns to NL rivers have increased since the moratorium on commercial salmon fisheries, with the exception of some rivers on Newfoundland’s south coast. In general, annual returns of salmon are highly variable and populations on the south coast continue to decline. Marine smolt survival is considered to be a major factor limiting the abundance of Atlantic Salmon within the region.
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