Science Advisory Report  2012/040

Stock status of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) in DFO Gulf Region (Salmon Fishing Areas 15 to 18)

Summary

• Atlantic salmon in DFO Gulf Region are harvested in Aboriginal Food, Social and Ceremonial (FSC) fisheries and in recreational fisheries. All recreational fisheries for large (>= 63 cm fork length) salmon are mandatory catch-and-release.
• Atlantic salmon occupy 115 rivers (that empty into estuaries) in the southern Gulf of St. Lawrence (DFO Gulf Region). Sixty percent of these are small rivers with conservation egg requirements of less than 0.5 million eggs, equivalent to about 100 large salmon. Only four rivers are large and have conservation egg requirements that exceed 15 million eggs each.
• Returns of large salmon to Gulf Region overall in 2011 were estimated to be about 75,000 fish and at near maximum levels over the 1970 to 2011 time series. Large salmon spawners in 2011 were also estimated to be at record levels in Gulf Region and individual Salmon Fishing Areas (SFA).
• Small salmon (< 63 cm fork length) returns for Gulf Region in 2011 were estimated at about 73,000 fish and near the highest levels estimated since 1994 but were still low relative to the returns estimated during 1985 to 1993 (85,000 to 190,000 fish) and in several years during the 1970s.
• The high abundance of large salmon in 2011 was preceded by greatly improved returns of small salmon in 2010 in most areas. The improved returns in 2010 and 2011 were the result of improved marine survival of the 2009 smolt migration.
• Adult assessments are only conducted for the five largest rivers in Gulf Region: Restigouche River, Nepisiguit River, Northwest Miramichi River, Southwest Miramichi River, Margaree River.
• Conservation requirements, in terms of eggs from all size groups, were exceeded in all assessed rivers in 2011 including the Restigouche River (SFA 15A), Nepisiguit River (SFA 15B), the Northwest and Southwest Miramichi rivers (SAFA 16A), and the Margaree River (SFA 18B). The Northwest Miramichi River only achieved conservation requirements twice (2001 and 2011) during the 1998 to 2011 period.
• Removal rates on large salmon in Gulf Region overall are estimated to be in the range of 3% to 6% of total returns. Removal rates on small salmon are estimated to be in the range of 17% to 40% annually although in absence of reliable and complete harvest data these estimates are based on assumptions of catch rates and losses. Exploitation rates in individual rivers will vary from these depending upon the intensity of the aboriginal FSC and recreational fisheries.
• The drift surface gillnet fishery for mackerel which occurs in June in the southern Gulf of St. Lawrence likely has the greatest potential for salmon bycatch. This fishery would be expected to intercept salmon from rivers of Gulf Region and likely rivers in Quebec as well.
• The fishery at West Greenland exploits salmon from Gulf Region rivers with an estimated 3% to 10% of the total two-sea-winter salmon from Gulf Region rivers annually harvested in this fishery over the past five years.
• Because of undocumented harvests in aboriginal fisheries and incomplete or absent statistics on catches and harvests in the recreational fisheries, assessment of the effectiveness of management measures cannot be provided. Assumptions must be made to assess spawning escapements and compliance with conservation egg requirements.
• There are currently about 23 rivers out of 71 rivers historically in SFA 17 (PEI) with confirmed salmon populations. Salmon production in this area is constrained by sediment input from agricultural and other sources, fish kills due to pesticide inputs, water quality problems (low dissolved oxygen, high temperatures), competition with introduced rainbow trout, and habitat fragmentation due to artificial dams and improperly installed culverts.
• Proposed catch and release kelt fisheries are expected to have minimal impact on salmon conservation in rivers in SFA 18A (River Philip and West River Antigonish).

This Science Advisory Report is from the Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Canadian Science Advisory Secretariat, regional advisory process meeting of March 12-14, 2012 on the stock status of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) in DFO Gulf Region (Salmon Fishing Areas 15 to 18). Additional publications from this process will be posted as they become available on the DFO Science Advisory Schedule.

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