Evaluation of stocked game fish in Birch, Quartz, Chena and Harding Lakes, 1993

Description

In 1991, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G) made significant changes in the species and numbers of game fish stocked in Birch, Quartz, Chena, and Harding lakes. These changes were based on Fishery Management Plans (FMP) (ADF&G 1993) for each of these fisheries. Objectives in the FMPs such as providing annual mean catch rates and limiting stocking costs serve to guide ADF&G in management of these fisheries. Studies in 1993 were intended to provide fishery managers with information to assess how well ADF&G is progressing toward achieving these management objectives. Results from studies in 1992 for these lakes showed the mean harvest rates ranged from 0.52 to 1.53 fish per angler day of effort, the stocking costs ranged from $41,081 to $291,198, and the costs per angler day ranged from $3.05 to $57.46. In Birch, Quartz, and Chena lakes rainbow trout Oncorhynchus mykiss and coho salmon Oncorhynchus kisutch were stocked for several years and made up most of the harvest. Under the new stocking strategy Arctic char Salvelinus alpinus and Arctic grayling Thymallus arcticus were recent additions to Birch and Quartz lakes to increase species diversity. Also, the numbers of rainbow trout and coho salmon stocked in these lakes were decreased to reduce the stocking costs. Samples of each species were collected from each lake to estimate the size and catch composition of the age 1 fish. These data were used to determine if the new stocking strategy was having the desired effect. Brood tables were developed that projected the annual and total contribution to the harvest of stocking cohorts of rainbow trout and coho salmon in Birch, Quartz, and Chena lakes. Rainbow trout stocked as fingerlings provided an estimated average return to the creel of 3.3%. Rainbow trout stocked as subcatchables provided an estimated 31.2% return and those stocked as catchables provided an estimated 55.0% return to the creel. In Birch Lake, an estimated 12.2% of the rainbow trout stocked were harvested. The percent return to the creel in Quartz and Chena lakes for rainbow trout was 4.9% and 23.4% respectively. Coho salmon stocked as fingerlings provided a 14.8% return in Birch Lake, a 21.0% return in Quartz Lake and an 8.0% return in Chena Lake.

Subjects

Genres

• Statistics

Series Statement

• Fishery data series -- no. 94-44.

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