SOCKEYE FORECAST: The 2010 forecast total return of Somass Sockeye to the terminal fishing area is reforecast to 700,000. The escapement goal is now 387,000. The available TAC in the terminal area is 313,000.
ESCAPEMENT: Through June 30, total sockeye escapement is 140,000; Great Central Lake has reached approximately 58,000 adults. Sockeye escapement to Sproat Lake is now estimated at about 82,000. Over the past week, daily counts ranged from 400 to 12,000 through Great Central fishway and from 700 to 1,700 through Sproat fishway.
BIOLOGICAL INFORMATION: Biological samples have been collected from the test-boat, commercial and First Nations fisheries in Alberni Inlet and Barkley Sound. 400 sockeye have been sampled in the Test Fishery to date. A PIT tagging program now in progress will help to identify Somass sockeye migration patterns relative to environmental conditions. A higher than expected proportion of age 42 fish has been observed through the sampling programs.
TEST-FISHING: The test boat began operations on June 14. The purpose of the test fishery is to estimate abundance of sockeye in the Alberni Canal and to collect biological specimens for assessment (age and stock composition and parasite load). The test fishery uses a combination of acoustic soundings and seine sets to determine the abundance of sockeye in the Canal. The abundance estimate from the June 28/29 test fishery was 70,000 for the outside area and 80,000 for inner Alberni Inlet.
For updated weekly test-fishing catch information go to the following website:
http://www-ops2.pac.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/xnet/content/salmon/testfish/default.htm ABORIGINAL FISHING: Somass River First Nations catch to date is 49,000 sockeye from a combination of two days per week gill-netting and from weekly communal drag seine fishing at Papermill Dam.
COMMERCIAL FISHING: 8 Area B seine vessels fished 6 hours on Sunday, June 27 in Barkley Sound and lower Alberni Inlet for 34,650 sockeye.
RECREATIONAL FISHING: Recreational fishery caught an estimated 14,500 sockeye to June 29. Bag limit increased to 4 per day in Alberni Inlet Saturday, June 26. (remains 2 per day in Somass River)
NEXT WEEK'S FISHING PLANS:Aboriginal – Tseshaht and Hupacasath First Nations fishing in Somass River and upper Alberni Inlet; Barkley Sound First Nations fishing in lower Alberni Inlet and Barkley Sound.
Commercial - Seine fishery to commence at 11:00 a.m. on Monday, July 5 for one day; Gill-net fishery to commence Tuesday, July 6 in Barkley Sound, lower Alberni Inlet for 6 hours with possible extension.
Recreational – Effort and catch expected to increase over the next week
For more information please contact the DFO office in Port Alberni at 250 720-4440 or go online to :
http://www.pac.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/recfish/Opportunities/PN/A23&123BarkleyChinookPN.pdf for the Area 23 Recreational Chinook Fishery Notice or
http://www.pac.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/recfish/Opportunities/PN/A23&123BarkleyCohoPN.pdf for the Area 23 Recreational Coho Fishery Notice
For more information contact the local DFO office in Port Alberni at 250 720-4440
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Topic: Somas Sockeye June 30 Bulletin (Read 3128 times)