The goal of this project is to investigate the critical habitat, abundance, migration patterns, survival, and alternate life history strategies exhibited by spring Chinook salmon and summer steelhead juveniles from distinct populations in the Grande Ronde River and Imnaha River subbasins. This project will provide information on abundance of naturally produced spring Chinook salmon and steelhead parr, estimates for egg-to-migrant survival for spring Chinook salmon and migrant survival for steelhead, estimate the Viable Salmonid Population (VSP) Indicator smolts per spawner for four natural populations of spring Chinook salmon, and assess stream conditions in selected study streams. This study provides a means for long term monitoring of juvenile salmonid natural production in the Grande Ronde and Imnaha River subbasins that is essential for assessing the success of restoration and enhancement efforts including hatchery supplementation and habitat improvement. As hatchery supplementation of spring Chinook salmon continues in the Grande Ronde Subbasin, we will monitor abundance of naturally produced migrants, life history characteristics, and survival to various life stages to provide data to the Lower Snake River Compensation Plan - Oregon Evaluation project to determine the effectiveness of this management action. This research, monitoring, and evaluation project focuses on natural populations of Snake River Spring/Summer Chinook salmon and Snake River steelhead. This project does not involve hatchery activities.

This project coordinates and collaborates with many projects, including Columbia River Intertribal Fish Commission (CRITFC) and their project 2009-004-00 Monitoring Recovery Trends in Key Spring Chinook Habitat Variables and Validation of Population Viability Indicators, the Columbia Habitat and Monitoring Program (CHaMP) project 2011-006-00, and Lower Snake River Compensation Plan - Oregon Evaluation project. This project collects genetic samples from juvenile Chinook salmon and provides them to NOAA Fisheries for the Columbia Basin-wide Relative Reproductive Success (RSS) study, project 1989-096-00. This project provides data for the Interior Columbia Technical Recovery Team (ICTRT) spring Chinook salmon life cycle model.


Objectives:

1.   Document the in-basin migration patterns and estimate abundance of naturally produced spring Chinook salmon juveniles in Catherine Creek and the upper Grande Ronde, Minam, and Lostine rivers.   Associated tasks: operation of rotary screw traps, PIT tagging, data analysis.

2.   Determine overwinter mortality and the relative success of fall (early) migrant and spring (late) migrant life history strategies for spring Chinook salmon from tributary populations in Catherine Creek and the upper Grande Ronde, and Lostine rivers, and the relative success of fall (early) migrant and spring (late) migrant life history strategies for spring Chinook salmon from the Minam River.   Associated tasks: operation of rotary screw traps, PIT tagging, data analysis.

3.   Estimate and compare smolt survival probabilities at main stem Columbia and Snake River dams for migrants from five local, natural populations of spring Chinook salmon in the Grande Ronde River and Imnaha River subbasins.  Associated tasks: capture of Chinook salmon parr, PIT tagging, data analysis.

4.   Estimate the Viable Salmonid Population (VSP) Indicator, smolts per spawner, for spring Chinook salmon in the Catherine Creek, Upper Grande Ronde River, Lostine River, and Minam River populations. Associated tasks: operation of rotary screw traps, PIT tagging, data analysis.

5.   Document the annual migration patterns for spring Chinook salmon juveniles from five local, natural populations in the Grande Ronde River and Imnaha River subbasins: Catherine Creek, Upper Grande Ronde, Lostine, Minam, and Imnaha rivers.  Associated tasks: capture of Chinook salmon parr, PIT tagging, data analysis.

6.   Document patterns of movement and estimate abundance of juvenile steelhead from tributary populations in Catherine Creek, the upper Grande Ronde, Lostine and the Minam rivers including migration timing, and duration.  Associated tasks: operation of rotary screw traps, PIT tagging, data analysis.

7.   Estimate and compare survival probabilities to main stem Columbia and Snake River dams for summer steelhead from four tributary populations: Catherine Creek and the upper Grande Ronde, Lostine, and Minam rivers.  Associated tasks: operation of rotary screw traps, PIT tagging, data analysis.

8.   Describe aquatic habitat conditions, using water temperature and discharge, in Catherine Creek and the upper Grande Ronde, Lostine, and Minam rivers.  Associated tasks: data collection, data analysis.

9.   Estimate density and distribution of steelhead parr and Chinook salmon parr from the Wallowa/Lostine populations.  Associated tasks: steelhead and Chinook salmon parr surveys, data analysis.

11. Support PIT array O&M

12. Participate in regional coordination for LCM and run reconstruction meetings