Anadromous Cataloging and Fish Inventory in Select Chukchi Sea Drainages

Across the 2017 and 2018 field seasons, AFFI crews visited and made observations at 235 different target sites across the study areas, supporting 60 nominations to the Anadromous Waters Catalog. As a result of these nominations, 50 new or extended water bodies were added to the AWC, resulting in the addition of approximately 996.5 km of previously undocumented anadromous fish habitat. In the second season of the project, AKSSF funds were leveraged with additional funding sources not originally budgeted which enabled significant geographic expansion.

Updated and more comprehensive AWC coverage will be the primary benefit of this project toward sustaining salmon habitat. By sampling target streams, this project will add many (likely >100) previously unlisted kilometers of salmon habitat to the AWC. Only anadromous fish habitat listed in the AWC receives protection under the Anadromous Fish Act and various other policies that provide additional protections to specified anadromous fish habitat. Also, providing more complete and accessible fish community and habitat information will benefit ADF&G, as well as help other federal, state, and local resource agencies, to better implement their respective fish habitat management, protection, and research missions. Better protection and management of salmon habitat will benefit salmon fisheries and the communities they sustain by safeguarding critical salmon habitat, thereby ensuring the long-term productivity of habitats and salmon populations.