2020 Middle Klamath River and Lower Salmon River Juvenile Salmonid Out-migration Monitoring

Objective: Determine annual fish production estimates; evaluate real-time fish health conditions, growth rates, migration rates and assists with development of flow based fish production models. Determine real-time migration timing and yearly production rates of mainstem Klamath River juvenile salmon that are useful for water management and disease control actions.


Background: The Karuk Tribe has conducted juvenile salmonid out-migrant monitoring in the mainstem Klamath River since 1997 and in the mainstem Salmon River since 2001. The Karuk Fisheries Program has worked in collaboration with the US Fish and Wildlife Service and the Salmon River Restoration Council (SRRC) with trapping operations since 2002 by providing labor for trap operations.


The Tribe proposes to work in cooperation with SRRC and operate rotary traps seven days per week on the lower mainstem Klamath River near Orleans and the lower Salmon Rivers. Trapping operations will begin in March and continue into July, or until holding live fish is not feasible due to poor water quality. Water quality in the Salmon River has not been a problem therefore will continue through the August and September time frame. Monitoring will continue in the mainstem Klamath near Orleans at Big Bar throughout the fall months (Oct-Dec) to capture fall redistribution of Coho salmon juveniles. The Big Bar site is utilized for fish health sampling and monitoring fish disease infection levels.


The Tribe proposes to work in cooperation with the US Fish and Wildlife Service at two additional trapping sites located in the upper Klamath River near Kinsman Creek and near where the Klamath River crosses under Interstate highway 5 and downstream of Iron Gate Dam. This river reach is the primary rearing reach for juvenile chinook and coho salmon spawning below Iron Gate Dam, but also the large population of juvenile fish emigrating from the Shasta River. In recent years, droughts, low flows and fish disease are major limiting factors for juvenile salmonid production.


The Tribe will provide staff needed to operate and maintain out-migrant smolt traps at two locations, Kinsman Creek and Interstate 5, on the upper mainstem Klamath below Iron Gate Dam. Additionally the Tribe will operate smolt traps at two locations in the Klamath River near Orleans, Kinsman Creek and lower Salmon River. Other work includes beach seining, fish health sample collection and weekly trap catch efficiencies. The Tribe will actively coordinate efforts with US Fish and Wildlife Service and Salmon River Restoration Council including input of data and upgrade the current Microsoft Access database.

Project Benefit: The project will provide data to long term Chinook salmon production monitoring efforts that have been ongoing in the Klamath River for the past 25 years. The project will specifically benefit Chinook salmon production modeling efforts conducted by the Karuk Tribe and US Fish and Wildlife Service where model inputs are based on real out-migrant catch data and model outputs can be verified by real monitoring data. This project will provide information regarding listed species such SONCC Coho Salmon.