Response for project 198605000: Evaluate Sturgeon Physical Hab
Comment on proposed FY 2006 budget
The proposed budget should be $1,431,916. Although the “Council Approved” spreadsheet (6/11/2003) for Mainstem/Systemwide projects shows $1,378,916 for FY2004 and FY2005, this was a continuation of mistakes concerning carryover originally made by Council staff in recommending a budget for FY 2004. The correct budget to complete specific tasks recommended by Council, CBFWA, and BPA (tasks 1a, 1c, 3a, 3b, 3c) was $1,431,916. The proposed budget of $1,431,916 includes $103,333 for task 3b, which was originally scheduled for completion by 2005. However, because of the length of the reproductive cycle of wild white sturgeon (2 to 11+ years) and a 21% recapture rate of previously tagged individuals to date, this work should continue for at least 12 years to truly understand the maturation cycle in wild white sturgeon. This work has great value to the management and understanding of sturgeon populations affected by the hydropower system. The continuation of work is supported by and will be beneficial to the Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, the Upper Columbia River White Sturgeon Recovery Initiative, Kootenai River White Sturgeon recovery, and Nez Perce Snake River white sturgeon management.
Accomplishments since the last review
| # of fish | 2003 - Transported 4,177 juvenile white sturgeon from below Bonneville Dam to John Day Reservoir and 941 to The Dalles Reservoir. | |
| # of fish | 2004 - Transported 2,951 juvenile white sturgeon from below Bonneville Dam to John Day Reservoir. | |
| Production: # fish released from program, by life stage and species | 2004 – Released 12,000 PIT-tagged and scute-marked age-0 and 8,600 scute-marked age-1 hatchery-reared white sturgeon into Rock Island Reservoir. Funding reductions preclude continuing this effort. | |
| Collect/Generate/Validate Field and Lab Data | 2004 - Collected paired blood and gonad samples from 727 white sturgeon in the Columbia River between February 2000 and March 2004. | |
| Analyze/Interpret Data | 2003 – Estimated abundance of white sturgeon in The Dalles Reservoir to be 104,350 fish greater than 54 cm total length. Only 5,928 of these were in the legal size class. | |
| Analyze/Interpret Data | 2003 - Estimated abundance of transported fish from previous years to be 10,588 in The Dalles Reservoir, approximately 10% of the white sturgeon population. | |
| Analyze/Interpret Data | 2003 – Determined that trends in catch, effort, season length, and size composition since 1999 suggest that the legal-size populations in Bonneville and John Day reservoirs have declined. | |
| Analyze/Interpret Data | 2003 - Showed that river discharges and water temperatures during April through July 2001 provided some of the worst conditions since 1985 for spawning by white sturgeon. | |
| Analyze/Interpret Data | 2003 – Showed that predation on young sturgeon cannot be discounted as a factor in poor spawning success. Northern pikeminnow, channel catfish, walleye, and prickly sculpins are capable of eating young sturgeon. | |
| Analyze/Interpret Data | 2004 - Estimated abundance of white sturgeon in Bonneville Reservoir to be 120,000 fish greater than 54 cm total length. | |
| Analyze/Interpret Data | 2004 – Provided information that allowed the Sturgeon Management Task Force to address in-season fishery management actions. | |
| Analyze/Interpret Data | 2004 – Determined that both gill nets and trawling can be used to assess relative trends in age-0 white sturgeon abundance. | |
| Analyze/Interpret Data | 2004 – Determined that white sturgeon showed sex- and maturity-specific levels of plasma steroids. | |
| Analyze/Interpret Data | 2004 – Determined that the gametogenic cycle may be a 2 to 4+ year cycle in males and a 3 to 5+ year cycle in females, with the majority of females displaying a 5+ year cycle. |
FY 2006 goals and anticipated accomplishments
Project goals remain to (1) implement and evaluate measures to protect and enhance white sturgeon populations and to mitigate for effects of the hydropower system on production of white sturgeon in Columbia River impoundments downstream from McNary Dam, and (2) determine the need and identify potential measures for protecting and enhancing white sturgeon populations and mitigating for effects of the hydropower system on production of white sturgeon in the Columbia and Snake rivers upstream from McNary Dam. Anticipated Accomplishments: Fall 2005 - Capture and transplant up to 10,000 juvenile white sturgeon from below Bonneville Dam to The Dalles and John Day reservoirs. FY 2006 - Continue intensive fisheries management and monitoring of harvest in Bonneville, The Dalles, and John Day reservoirs. Spring/summer 2006 - Monitor the status of the white sturgeon population in Bonneville Reservoir. Spring/summer 2006 - Determine sex, maturational status, and reproductive potential of white sturgeon in impounded and unimpounded areas. Fall/winter 2005 - Describe annual variation in white sturgeon recruitment.
Subbasin planning
How is this project consistent with subbasin plans?
White sturgeon are listed as focal species in the Lower Middle Columbia, the Columbia Gorge, and the Lower Columbia/Estuary subbasin plans. Project activities are concentrated in areas covered by the Lower Middle Columbia and Columbia Gorge plans. The project is consistent with and implements white sturgeon mainstem objectives and strategies of the Lower Middle Columbia subbasin plan (Section 8.3.2). Specific strategies addressed include: · Supplement less productive impounded white sturgeon populations through capture of juvenile white sturgeon from below Bonneville Dam and transporting them into The Dalles and John Day reservoirs to compensate for year class failures. · Identify the need for and evaluate the success of white sturgeon population recovery activities (stock assessments). · Continue to monitor harvest levels and adjust fishing regulations as necessary between Bonneville and McNary dams. The project is also consistent with and implements white sturgeon objectives, strategies, and RM&E needs identified in the Columbia Gorge subbasin plan (Section 5.2.1). Specific strategies and RM&E needs addressed include: · Manage white sturgeon in Bonneville Reservoir for sustainable harvest. This strategy relates to objectives 1 through 5 (pages 78-79). · Maintain intensive management of fisheries for impounded white sturgeon populations. This RM&E need addresses objectives 1 through 5. · Continue mark-recapture surveys to estimate population abundance. This RM&E need addresses objectives 1 through 5.
How do goals match subbasin plan priorities?
This project accomplishes priority work identified in the Lower Middle Columbia and Columbia Gorge subbasin plans. In the Lower Middle Columbia plan, supplementing impounded populations and evaluating the success of population recovery activities both ranked “high” in their relative contribution to causal relationships affecting white sturgeon populations. Continuing to monitor harvest levels and adjusting fishing regulations ranked “medium” in its relative contribution. In the Columbia Gorge plan, managing white sturgeon for sustainable harvest was considered an “urgent need”.