The overall objective is to restore the kokanee fishery in Banks Lake.  In 2002 we implemented an evaluation study to determine the success of hatchery releases of Kokanee into Banks Lake.  Evaluating the survival and harvest contribution rates of three different release strategies, spring fry, fall fingerling and yearling net pen releases indicated that fall fry survived the best followed closely by net pen yearlings.  Spring fry survival was poor.  In 2013 net pens were moved to deeper water near Steamboat Rock allowing net pen fish access to open water upon release. Since the pens were moved, the net pen reared yearling release has shown the highest survival to adult age classes. Therefore, we will work to discontinue spring fry stocking and, if feasible, expand on the WDFW net pen program.  In addition, we will continue to test night and day, open water stocking of fall fry and compare survival to the adult life stage.  However, to legitimately evaluate these strategies we need to continue to sample the kokanee population over the next several years to quantify how many age 2 to 4 yr-old Kokanee are produced by each release option.  Adult kokanee will be collected during all fish surveys, creel, and during focused kokanee sampling (with boat electrofishing) to collect otoliths to determine stock specific survival.

Ford State Fish Hatchery will receive eggs from the Lake Whatcom Fish hatchery and raise those eggs to fry with funds from the BPA.  Fish food is supplied through ALEA grants.  Kokanee will then be planted into net pens by the Ford State Fish Hatchery and raised from October 2018 through their release in May or June 2019 by WDFW staff.

Walleye predation on Kokanee was determined to be the primary top down limiting factor to Kokanee survival in Banks Lake.  Piscivory by Smallmouth Bass occurs but was found to be less prevalent.  The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife liberalized the Walleye regulations in Banks Lake to remove more of the smaller walleye that have the highest consumption rates on Kokanee.  Fall Walleye Index Netting (FWIN) will be used to monitoring the walleye population over time.  An annual creel survey will be used to monitor Walleye harvest and size of fish harvested.

Lake Whitefish are the primary competitors with kokanee for zooplankton prey.  Lake Whitefish removal efforts will continue in the summer and winter months.  Reducing Lake Whitefish biomass will reduce their predatory impact on zooplankton.  A summer hydroacoustic surveys (July) will be used to monitor abundance and distribution of limnetic fish species including Kokanee and Lake Whitefish (target verification with limnetic gill netting survey).

Water quality and zooplankton monitoring will continue to identify if sub-optimal conditions occur for kokanee during survival-based studies and monitor Daphnia density and body size.

The budget for this project has been flat lined over the past several years. At the same time costs to conduct the same work have increased steadily resulting in reductions in the scope of work. FY19 budget allotments to this project will dictate the tasks that will continue, be reduced or eliminated form the scope of work (see FY18 budget for reductions made per task).

In summary, a sustained reduction in the effective size of our treatment (i.e., Whitefish removal), like occurred in 2017, would minimize or more importantly negate past efforts to reduce the standing crop of Lake Whitefish in Banks Lake and ultimately increase Kokanee survival.  Increased post-release survival of Kokanee is critical if a historically important fishery is ever to be present in Banks Lake and above the blocked area again.

The end of project deliverable will be a draft journal manuscript; eventually replaced with published version. The manuscript will use summarized, analyzed data sets to determine if Kokanee can reach density goals in a system occupied by top-down and bottom-up competitors. As the project closes, a new proposal will be developed to evaluate fish predator abundance and impacts above McNary Dam.  This project would use habitat specific fish density to refine population abundance, and track abundance through space and time to establish a baseline for before-after analysis when management actions are implemented to reduce predatory impacts to salmon.  This new project would be funded with funds allocated to the Banks Lake Project.