Science Advisory Report 2009/055

Framework for implementation of the Wild Salmon Policy: Initial lists of Conservation Units for British Columbia

Summary

• Conservation Units or CUs are groups of from one to about 170 salmon populations that are fundamental units of diversity to be conserved and managed under Canada’s Policy for the Conservation of Wild Pacific Salmon or the WSP.
• A method was developed to identify these units and applied to the wild Pacific salmon of British Columbia
• The Pacific salmon of British Columbia are extraordinarily diverse with 420 CUs identified.
• Lake-type sockeye are the most diverse of the seven species and life-history types considered with 214 CUs. Most of the CUs were located in the small coastal lakes on the Central and Northern Coasts.
• 68 CUs of chinook salmon were identified. The chinook salmon of the large rivers particularly the Fraser and Skeena Rivers were particularly diverse.
• 43 CUs of coho salmon were identified. Of interest, the COSEWIC designated Interior Fraser coho comprise five CUs, illustrating the general conclusion that CUs are nested within the Designatable Units of COSEWIC.
• 39 CUs of chum salmon and 32 CUs of pink salmon were identified. Interestingly, the least diverse species are numerically the most abundant.
• Chum salmon and chinook salmon also occur in the Canadian portions of the Yukon River, in the Mackenzie River and possibly in some of the coastal streams of the western Arctic. CUs for those areas are yet to be identified.

Complete document (PDF, 1301 KB)

Accessibility Notice

This document is available in PDF format. If the document is not accessible to you, please contact the Secretariat to obtain another appropriate format, such as regular print, large print, Braille or audio version.