Effects of hatchery rearing and sea ranching of parents on the life history traits of released salmon offspring

Life-history traits such as growth, survival, sea migration and age at sexual maturity in the sea were compared between Carlin-tagged hatchery-reared Atlantic salmon smolts (Salmo salar) originating from hatchery broodstocks (reared) or naturally ascending spawners captured (sea ranched). The ranched parents included both wild (born in nature) and reared individuals (released as parr or smolts). All smolts were reared in similar hatchery conditions, and they were tagged and released as two-year-olds in the Simojoki River in 1986-2007. The recapture rates did not differ between the progeny groups, although the tagged smolts of the reared parents were larger than those of ranched parents at time of release. The captive salmon with ranched parents were at average heavier during their second winter at sea, but not later. Salmon with ranched parents more frequently migrated to feed in the Main Basin of the Baltic Sea, further from the home river of the salmon stock. The proportions of multi-sea-winter returners were 30% and 69% in salmon with reared and ranched parents, respectively. The different patterns of migration and sea age at maturity of these parental progeny groups suggest that differences in the life history of brood fish may cause distinct, possibly even genetic differences in the progenies. (c) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

Tornionjoen lohi-, meritaimen- ja vaellussiikakannat – yhteinen ruotsalais-suomalainen biologinen selvitys sopivien kalastussääntöjen arvioimiseksi vuodelle 2020

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Tornionjoen lohi-, meritaimen- ja vaellussiikakannat – yhteinen ruotsalais-suomalainen biologinen selvitys sopivien kalastussääntöjen arvioimiseksi vuodelle 2019

202

Basin-scale phenology and effects of climate variability on global timing of initial seaward migration of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar)

Migrations between different habitats are key events in the lives of many organisms. Such movements involve annually recurring travel over long distances usually triggered by seasonal changes in the environment. Often, the migration is associated with travel to or from reproduction areas to regions of growth. Young anadromous Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) emigrate from freshwater nursery areas during spring and early summer to feed and grow in the North Atlantic Ocean. The transition from the freshwater (parr') stage to the migratory stage where they descend streams and enter salt water (smolt') is characterized by morphological, physiological and behavioural changes where the timing of this parr-smolt transition is cued by photoperiod and water temperature. Environmental conditions in the freshwater habitat control the downstream migration and contribute to within- and among-river variation in migratory timing. Moreover, the timing of the freshwater emigration has likely evolved to meet environmental conditions in the ocean as these affect growth and survival of the post-smolts. Using generalized additive mixed-effects modelling, we analysed spatio-temporal variations in the dates of downstream smolt migration in 67 rivers throughout the North Atlantic during the last five decades and found that migrations were earlier in populations in the east than the west. After accounting for this spatial effect, the initiation of the downstream migration among rivers was positively associated with freshwater temperatures, up to about 10 degrees C and levelling off at higher values, and with sea-surface temperatures. Earlier migration occurred when river discharge levels were low but increasing. On average, the initiation of the smolt seaward migration has occurred 2.5days earlier per decade throughout the basin of the North Atlantic. This shift in phenology matches changes in air, river, and ocean temperatures, suggesting that Atlantic salmon emigration is responding to the current global climate changes

Harson vaikutus tuhoeläinten esiintymiseen mansikalla. Jyväskylän yliopisto/Biologian laitos

Pro gradu -työ

Atlantic salmon (<em>Salmo salar</em> L.) stocking in the Simojoki river as a management practice

Abstract Long-term monitoring of the wild salmon (Salmo salar L.) stock of the Simojoki river and the stocked hatchery-reared salmon parr and smolts has provided a considerable amount of information on the development of the stock and factors affecting it. Data on the relationships between wild and reared salmon were collected by tagging and trapping both smolts and adult salmon having either a wild or reared background. The tag recapture rate of wild smolts was about twice as high as that of smolts stocked as two-year-olds and slightly greater than for smolts stocked as parr. When survival was measured in relation to the smolt size, the difference between the wild and reared smolts was even greater, and it seemed to be emphasized in years with a low survival rate. The difference observed between the wild and reared salmon in the smolt phase generally disappeared in the adult phase. When adult salmon returned to the river to spawn the difference in the timing of the ascent depended more on the age or sex of the salmon, and less on their origin. Similarly, the survival of adult salmon in the river before or after spawning and later after returning to the sea depended on the sex and age of the fish. The origin of fish affected their behaviour, the reared salmon wandering more than wild adults before settling down into spawning areas. When the yield of wild and reared smolts as returning adults was compared, the wild smolts gave the best results, although the survival from smolt to adult was low in all smolt groups, probably due to the high fishing pressure in the sea. The smolts stocked as parr and those stocked as two-year-old fish were similar in this respect. The former group gave better results if the yield was measured as the number of returning multi-sea-winter adults, while the latter group gave better results if one-sea-winter grilse were also included in the yield. The low yield of adult salmon from stocking and the generally low survival of smolt groups irrespective of their origin emphasises the importance of fishing regulations as a tool in the maintenance or enhancement of naturally reproducing salmon stocks. However, despite the low profitability of stocking, it probably safeguarded the existence of the wild Simojoki salmon stock during its critical phase in the early 1990s. At that time the fishing regulations were not strict enough to prevent the alarming decrease in the salmon stock, and the adult spawners produced by stocking of young salmon may have had a relatively higher value than their number suggests