Nisqually Chinook Recovery Plan Annual Review.

Nisqually Chinook Annual Review

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Nisqually Chinook Recovery Plan Annual Review

Nisqually National Wildlife RefugeMay 28th, 2014


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Nisqually Chinook Management: In a Nutshell• Native Nisqually Chinook Extirpated• Current Chinook stock is Green River, with no new imports since early 90’s• Natural production predominately hatchery strays• Nisqually Chinook Recovery Plan contains aggressive Habitat Restoration

and Protection Actions▫ Nearly 80% of Nisqually mainstem protected along with large sections

of primary tributaries▫ Over 900 acres of estuary restored▫ Miles of tributary habitat restored

• All ‘H’ stock plan developed in 2011, currently in implementation▫ Reduces harvest of natural origin fish▫ Uses mainstem weir at RM 12 to remove Chinook hatchery strays▫ Establishes a small integrated program which feeds a ‘stepping stone’

hatchery program for harvest

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“Whenever you oversimplify, you are being unjust.”- Ernest Hemingway


2013 All ‘H’ ReviewHabitat: “Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe.” ― Abraham Lincoln

Weir Operations: “It does not do to leave a live dragon out of your calculations, if you live near him.” ― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit

Harvest:“Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the face.” ― Mike Tyson

Hatchery:“This is the best bad plan we have, sir.” ― Chris Terrio

Research, Monitoring, and Evaluation:“People who think they know everything are a great annoyance to those of us who do.”― Isaac Asimov

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“Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe.” ― Abraham Lincoln

250 acre McKenna Ranch •High Priority Reach•Identified in 2004 Off-ChannelAssessment•Landowner relationshipcultivated for decades•Landowner expressed interestin selling to NLT and Tribe•NLT, SPSSEG, and Tribe received grant to appraise property anddevelop restoration concepts•NLT and Tribe awarded $3.5 Million Large Capital PSARgrant in regionally competitive process•Negotiations matured, matchwas identified, and P&S agreementabout to be signed

•Landowner Backed Out!

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“They said you can't go to the moon. They said you can't put cheese inside a pizza crust, but NASA did it. They had to, because the cheese kept floating off in space.” ― Stephen Colbert

Petersen Conservation Easement: Protects over 200 acres of high quality habitat along Nisqually River and Yelm Creek from development.

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Mashel River Protection Projects


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"A nickel ain’t worth a dime anymore" — Yogi Berra

Ohop Phase 3 Funds secured! Construction starts summer 2014. Over 6 different funding sources….

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“It is not in the stars to hold our destiny but in ourselves.”― William Shakespeare

Thousands of trees have been planted over hundreds of acres by NIT native plant crew. Additionally, volunteer events by our partners in the watershed have contributed greatly to reforestation effort.

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Weir Operations: “It does not do to leave a live dragon out of your calculations, if you live near him.” ― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit

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“Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened.” ― Dr. Seuss

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Species Total At Weir

Pink 147,413Coho-Not Clipped 192Chinook-Natural Origin 95Chinook-Hatchery 85Chum 26Coho-Clipped 12Sockeye 9Large Scale Sucker 2Cutthroat Trout 1


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Pinks

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Harvest:“Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the face.” ― Mike Tyson

Preseason Expectationso Forecast

Marked: 34,296 Unmarked Hatchery: 2,029 Unmarked naturals: 1,296

Total unmarked: 3,325o Total of: 37,621

o Harvest Marked: 8,071 Unmarked: 756

Total of 8,827 HR modeled: 24%

Beach Seine total encounters modeled: 392 Experimental gear type total encounters modeled: 50

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• In-season▫ Gill net fishery ran as scheduled with increased effort at end of season▫ Beach Seine fishery effort was lower than preseason expected▫ Experimental gear type fishery was not implemented

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“I’m not in this world to live up to your expectations and you’re not in this world to live up to mine.” ― Bruce Lee

Post Seasono Gill net fishery HR: 29.8%

Marked harvested: 9,547 Unmarked harvested: 1089

Total of 10,636o Beach Seine total encounter: 163o Total run size:

Marked: 32,075 Unmarked: 3,658

Total: 35,733

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Summary:

•Total run size to the river was very close to pre-season forecasts.

•Post season harvest rates were almost 6% higher than predicted.

•In 2012 Nisqually Indian Tribe, in order to preserve fishing time on the river and help obtain our rebuilding exploitation rate goal, decided to reduce from 3 nets per person to 2 nets per person.

•This regulation preformed perfectly in 2012 and the beginning of 2013.

•Towards the end of the run fishermen started adding people to their boats, increasing effort within the confines of the regulation.

•The 2014 pre-season modeled regulation has changed from 2 nets per person to 2 nets per boat.


Hatchery:“This is the best bad plan we have, sir.” ― Chris Terrio

Chinook both facilities:

Number Released: 4,033,460 (244,000) into Fort Lewis Lakes

Return Totals: 18,724 adult 3,581 jacks

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Integrated and Stepping Stone Programs: Not Implemented


Research, Monitoring, and Evaluation:“People who think they know everything are a great annoyance to those of us who do.”― Isaac Asimov

Chinook Escapement Estimate•Derived from ‘Change-in-Ratio’ formula based on the removals of hatchery and natural Chinook in fisheries, hatcheries, and at weir

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Removals Total Marked Unmarked

Sport 3839 3739 100

Commercial Gillnet 10636 9547 1089

Beach Seine 146 146 0

Tangle Net 0 0 0

Hatcheries and Creeks 19267 17669 1598

Total Removals 33888 31101 2786

Weir catch 125 66 59

Escapement above weir 1847Ad clipped above 975UM aboved Weir 872HOR above weir 1034NOR above weir 813 Escapement below weir 517HOR below 289NOR below 228 *Total system escapement 2293**HOR 1257***NOR 1036


“It's great to be a blonde. With low expectations it's very easy to surprise people.”- Pamela Anderson

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Question: Does restoring tidal flow also restore the ecological functions that support juvenile Chinook salmon?

- How do prey availability, prey energy content, and temperature regimes integrate to define the range of growth opportunities for juvenile Chinook in the reconnected habitats?

Tidal channel reconnected in 2009 Unaltered, reference tidal channel


22“The only time to eat diet food is while you're waiting for the steak to cook.” ― Julia Child


Juvenile Monitoring (Screw Trap)23

Chinook 0+

• VSP Criteria adult and juvenile

▫Productivity number of juveniles

per adult▫Spatial Distribution

habitat use▫Diversity

size timing genetic


Juvenile Monitoring (Screw Trap)24

steelhead

• VSP Criteria adult and juvenile

▫Productivity number of juveniles

per adult▫Spatial Distribution

habitat use▫Diversity

size timing genetic


Chinook Recovery Plan Monitoring and Adaptive Management with the PSP and RITT Common Framework Approach

25“Uhhhhh…..”-Me


“The reason that everybody likes planning is that nobody has to do anything.”-Jerry Brown

Select 2014 Chinook Plans•Run weir efficiently and exclude hatchery fish•Start integrated program•Meet total Exploitation Rate of 52% on Unmarked Chinook (estimated NIT harvest rate of 24%)•Participate in Salish Sea Marine Survival Research▫Chinook early marine growth and diet▫Steelhead early marine survival▫Zooplankton Ecology

•Begin implementation of Upper Mashel River Protection

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Thank You for Coming!27

Nisqually Chinook Recovery Plan Annual Review.

Environment

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