Research Document 1997/92

Status of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar L.) stock of Harry's River / Pinchgut Brook, Newfoundland, 1996)

By C.C. Mullins, D. Caines, and J.L. Fitzgerald

Abstract

The Atlantic salmon stock of Harrys River has shown signs of improvement since 1992 but the stock did not achieve it's conservation requirement in any year during this period. To increase the number of spawning salmon, the recreational fishery in the main stem of the river was closed to retention angling in 1996 and the fishery in the headwaters was closed to all angling. Anglers reported that fishing conditions were good early in the 1996 season. Water levels were low later in the season and anglers reported more sightings of salmon holding up in pools compared to previous years. This was probably due to the higher visibility of the fish in low water conditions. Recreational catch and effort statistics on Harrys River in 1996 were, for the first time, based solely on a licence stub return system, so comparison of angling statistics with previous years was impossible. The count of small salmon at the Pinchgut Brook counting fence in 1996 was less than in 1995 but greater than in 1992-94. The count of large salmon was greater than in 1992 and 1995 but less than in 1993-94. The spawning survey conducted in the fall of 1996 indicated that the Pinchgut Brook tributary system was the single most important spawning area for salmon on Harrys River. Thirty-three percent of the spawning in 1996 occurred on the Pinchgut Brook system compared to 41% in 1995. This difference may be attributable to some changes in the areas surveyed in 1996 compared to 1995 as well as annual variation in the distribution of spawning. With the retention fishery closed in 1996, the estimated total spawning escapement on Harrys River was 1,936 small and large salmon. The potential egg deposition from these spawners was only 52% of the conservation requirement for the river, raising serious concern for the conservation of this stock.

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