Salmon

Salmon are a critical resource to Alaskans and the Alaska economy.

Sockeye salmon are critical to the cultural, economic, and ecological integrity of the Bristol Bay region in Alaska. They have sustained people living in the region and provided for the majority of their subsistence diet for centuries. In addition to the sockeye caught by local residents, the Bristol Bay commercial fleet harvests around 20 million sockeye salmon annually valued at more than $100 million, making it the world’s largest and most valuable commercial sockeye fishery. Ecologically, sockeye salmon returning from the sea provide energy and nutrients vital to the freshwater ecosystems in which they spawn, as well as the neighboring riparian and terrestrial ecosystems.

Our monitoring objectives are to:

• Compile past and present data from various agencies monitoring spawner abundance, distribution, and timing of sockeye salmon from sampled systems in Southwest Alaska parklands.

• Estimate trends in spawner abundance, distribution, and timing of sockeye salmon from sampled systems in Southwest Alaska parklands.

We pursue these objectives in Kenai Fjords National Park and Katmai and Lake Clark national parks and preserves.

Contact: Krista Bartz

Find all articles, reports, and data here.