 
Juvenile
Salmonid Production Evaluation Report: Green River and Dungeness River
Chinook Monitoring Evaluations in 2007
PDF Format - [1.91 MB]
Acknowledgements
Green River
Measuring juvenile salmon production from large river systems like the
Green River involves a tremendous amount of work. Key to developing
these estimates are the long hours of trap operation provided by our
dedicated scientific technicians: Bob Green, Josh Weinheimer and Paul
Lorenz. Logistical support was provided by Wild Salmon Production/Evaluation
Unit biologist Mike Ackley.
A number of other individuals
and agencies contributed to this project. For providing access to the
trap site, we thank the adjacent landowner Bill Mosby. We also thank
Mike Wilson, manager of the Soos Creek Hatchery, for providing logistical
support and a secure staging site near the trap.
Dungeness River
WDFW scientific technicians Chris Burns, Andrew Simmons and Paul Lorenz
worked the long hours of trap operation; their hard work and dedication
was key to achieving our project goals. Wild Salmon Production Evaluation
Unit biologist Clayton Kinsel and scientific technician Bryan Blazer
provided logistical and technical support in all areas of the project.
In addition, we would like
to thank the landowners of Dungeness Farms Inc.: especially caretaker
Matt Heins, who gave us unrestricted access to their property for trap
placement, anchorage for our trap, water, phone, tools, and general
support; and landowners Ray Gorynski and Nash Huber, who allowed us
dike access to the trap site. We also thank Scott Chitwood and Rodger
Mosley, employees of the Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe, for their
contributions to this study, and Dan Witczak, manager of the Hurd Creek
Hatchery, for providing juvenile hatchery Chinook for trap calibration
tests, logistical support and storage of our office trailer and traps
during the off season.
Funding
The Washington State legislature funded monitoring activities on the
Green River between 2000 and 2002. Upon request from the legislature,
the Washington Salmon Recovery Funding Board (SRFB) has funded smolt
monitoring at Green River between 2002 and 2007, and Dungeness River
from 2005 to present.
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Abstract
Declining salmon populations
in the 1980s and 1990s resulted in the listing of a number of Washington
State salmon populations under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Most
listings occurred between 1997 and 1999 and impacted fisheries and
land management over the entire state. In response, the Washington
Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) expanded its freshwater salmon
production monitoring (smolt monitoring) program in order to improve
understanding of the status of listed species and their production
trends. During this period, monitoring projects were initiated on
Lower Columbia River steelhead in Cedar Creek and Puget Sound Chinook
in the Green River and the Dungeness River. The Salmon Recovery Funding
Board (SRFB) has funded smolt monitoring on the Green River and Cedar
Creek since 2002, and the Dungeness River since 2006. This report
provides results from smolt monitoring activities that occurred on
these three streams during the 2007 field season.
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