Lake Roosevelt Sturgeon Recovery (LRSRP)BPA Project No. 1995-027-00

White Sturgeon Enhancement (WSEP)BPA Project No. 2008-116-00

Upper Columbia White Sturgeon Recovery

Jason McLellan (CCT), Deanne Pavlik-Kunkel (STOI), and Matt Howell (WDFW)

Upper Columbia White Sturgeon

Recovery Initiative

• Established in 2000

• Recovery Plan in 2002

• Goal: “…ensure the persistence and viability of naturally-reproducing populations…” and “restore opportunities for beneficial use if feasible.”

• LRSRP (1995-027-00)• implement RP in the US

Lake Roosevelt Sturgeon Recovery Project

Population assessment

Setline Surveys

Acoustic telemetry

Fall Gill Netting(Natural

recruitment monitoring)

Recruitment failure research

ELH studies

Predation

Food availability

Conservation aquaculture

Preserve genetics

Rebuild demographics

Population Assessment (wild fish)

Columbia River kilometer1000 1050 1100 1150 1200 1250

ID c

odes

det

ecte

d (n

=78

; 104

-256

cm

FL

; mea

n =

190

)

0

10

20

30

40

0

10

20

30

40

0

10

20

30

40

0

10

20

30

40

Chalk Grade

2004

2005

2006

2007

HLK Dam

US-Canada Border

Marcus IslandHunters

Columbia-Spokaneconfluence

Setlining Acoustic telemetry

(GRTS)

Population assessment (wild fish)

0 50 100 150 200 250 3000

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

Fork Length (cm)0 50 100 150 200 250 300

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

140 50 100 150 200 250 300

Fre

qu

ency

(%

)

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

median = 181.5 cm FL for adult cohort (>150 cm FL)

median = 185.0 cm FL for adult cohort (>150 cm FL)

median = 202.0 cm FL for adult cohort (>150 cm FL)

1998 (Aug/Sep; n=200)

2004/2005 (Apr/May; n=303)

2009 (Aug/Sep; n=85)

1997 year class

40 60 80 100 120 140 160 1800

5

10

15

20

25

40 60 80 100 120 140 160 180

Fre

qu

ency

(%

)

0

5

10

15

20

25

Relative Weight (%)

40 60 80 100 120 140 160 1800

5

10

15

20

25

1998 (Aug/Sep; n=172)

2004/2005(Apr/May; n=242)

2009(Aug/Sep; n=75)

median = 87.9

median = 98.2

median = 93.8

“Adult” (FL>150 cm) conditionSetline catch composition

Population assessment (wild fish)

Reach Origin N 95% CI S 95% CI

WA1 Wild (>70 cm FL) 2,037 1,093-3,293 - -

BC2 (>34 cm FL) 1,151 414-1900 0.97 0.92-0.99

WA & BC3 Hatchery (6 mo. post rel.) - - 0.28 0.11-0.54

WA & BC3 Hatchery (2-5 yr post rel.) - - 0.88 0.35-0.99

1 Howell and McLellan (2007); 2 Irvine et al. (2007) ; 3 Golder (2007)

Conservation Aquaculture-Implementation and Adaptation-

• LRSRP program • BY 2003-2005

• Canada broodstock• BY 2006-2010

• Northport broodstock• BY 2010-2011

• Larval collection

• UCWSRI aquaculture review• Factorial mating • Canada releases reduced• Effective as of 2008 BY

Brood Year2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010

Num

ber

rele

ased

0

5000

10000

15000

20000

25000BC (DGT; yearlings) BC (DGT;sub-yearlings) WA (DGT; yearlings) WA (WLC; subyearlings)

(WA sub-yearling releases from BY 2011 larvae = 3,590)

Reach Origin N 95% CI S 95% CI

WA1 Wild (>70 cm FL) 2,037 1,093-3,293 - -

BC2 (>34 cm FL) 1,151 414-1900 0.97 0.92-0.99

WA & BC3 Hatchery (6 mo. post rel.) - - 0.28 0.11-0.54

WA & BC3 Hatchery (2-5 yr post rel.) - - 0.88 0.35-0.99

1 Howell and McLellan (2007); 2 Irvine et al. (2007) ; 3 Golder (2007)

Total transboundary releases through 2010 = 118,412

Conservation Aquaculture-Evaluation-

2007-2009 Summer Setline Surveys

Fall Gill Net SurveysJuveniles generally confined to river-reservoir transition zone

0 50 100 150 200 250 300

Fre

qu

ency

(n

)

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

hatcherywild

0 50 100 150 200 250 300

Wei

ght

(kg)

0

50

100

150

200

250

Fork Length (cm)0 50 100 150 200 250 300

Rel

ativ

e w

eigh

t (%

)

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

2009 Setline Survey Data

Conservation Aquaculture -Evaluation-

FL at initial capture or at release (cm)0 50 100 150 200 250

Mea

n an

nual

gro

wth

in F

L(c

m)

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Juvenile/unknown genderFemalesMalesAGR = 16.816 * e-0.010FL; R2 = 0.555

Age (years)0 10 20 30 40 50

For

k L

engt

h (c

m)

0

50

100

150

200

250

LCR (DeVore et al. 1995) BON (Beamesderfer et al. 1995)TDA (Beamesderfer et al. 1995)JND (Beamesderfer et al. (1995)Roosevelt Reach (DeVore et al. 2000)Roosevelt Reach (LRWSRP mark-recapture)Keenleyside Reach (RL&L 1996)

MARK RECAPTURE VBG (FABENS 1965)

Conservation Aquaculture-Evaluation-

• 100 broodstock spawned• 95 genotyped

• ~87% alleles represented

• Rare alleles in broodstock not in population sample

• Greater population diversity?

Early Life History-Spawning-

• Northport area• Inferred from telemetry of pre-

spawn adults (2004-2005)• Documented with egg mat gear

(2005-2008)

• Protracted spawning period• mid-late June through (at least)

July

• Commences when temp ~13-14 C at border

• Not associated with dam tailrace

Early Life History -Post hatch-

Jun Jul Aug

Post

-hat

ch c

atch

(n)

0

50

100

150

200

Dis

char

ge (C

FS)

5.0e+4

1.0e+5

1.5e+5

2.0e+5

2.5e+5

Wat

er te

mpe

ratu

re (

o C)

10

12

14

16

18

20

22

Water temperature at borderDocumented spawning period (egg mats)

DateJun Jul Aug

0

50

100

150

200

5.0e+4

1.0e+5

1.5e+5

2.0e+5

2.5e+5

10

12

14

16

18

20

22

Jun Jul Aug 0

50

100

150

200

5.0e+4

1.0e+5

1.5e+5

2.0e+5

2.5e+5

10

12

14

16

18

20

22

Post-hatch catchRiver discharge at border

2008

2007

2006

D-ring frame

Early Life History -post hatch-

36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 EFE LFE UNK

0.0

0.1

0.2

0.3

0.4

0.5

0.6

2006; n=446

36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 EFE LFE UNK

Pro

por

tion

of

catc

h

0.0

0.1

0.2

0.3

0.4

0.5

0.6

2007; n=752

Developmental stage36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 EFE LFE UNK

0.0

0.1

0.2

0.3

0.4

0.5

0.6

2008; n=648

Total length (mm)8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24

Blo

tted

wei

gh

t (m

g;

n=

63

7)

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

Yolk presentYolk exhaustedPrey present

8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24

Fre

qu

ency

(n

an

d %

)

0

20

40

60

80

100 Frequency (n=661)% fish that had exhausted yolk supply

D-ring catch composition

(prey principally chironomid pupae/larvae)

2008 D-ring data

Early Life History -post hatch-

Sampling locality

Mea

n C

PU

E (

SD

) (c

atch

per

1,0

00 m

3 )

and

wat

er v

eloc

ity

(ms-1

)

0.0

0.5

1.0

1.5

2.0CPUEWater velocity

6055

5729

• D-ring (late June-July)• Larval abundance declines

downstream

• Trawling (July-August)• No larvae in upper reservoir

• Fall gill nets (October)• No age-0 subyearlings

• Survival bottleneck• Between larval and age-0

juvenile stages (July-October)• Upper transition zone• Predation? Contaminants? Prey

base?

2008 D-ring

Riverine Upper transition zone

• Predator sampling• Electro-fishing• July-August 2005• 520 gut samples, 13

species• No sturgeon in diets

• Macro-invertebrate sampling• Various gears• July 2007-2010

Recruitment Failure Mechanisms

Recruitment Failure Mechanisms-Larval Transport-

Sampling period

CP

UE

(ca

tch

per

hou

r)

0

20

40

60

80

100

23 38 37 32 14

8pm-10pm10pm-12am

12am-2am2am-4am

4am-5am5am-7am

11

2011 D-ring (night sampling)

DateJun Jul Aug Sep

Pos

t h

atch

cat

ch (

n)

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

Dis

char

ge a

t U

S-C

anad

a B

ord

er (

CF

S)

5.0e+4

1.0e+5

1.5e+5

2.0e+5

2.5e+5

Post-hatch catch Discharge

Jun Jul Aug Sep 5.0e+4

1.0e+5

1.5e+5

2.0e+5

2.5e+5

3.0e+5

3.5e+5

1938-1969 mean (pre-dam/RF)1985-2010 mean (post-dam/RF)1997

2008 D-ring sampling

Power peaking

Sampling Period

Mea

n (

SE

) C

PU

E (

pos

t-h

atch

catc

h p

er 1

000

m3 )

0.0

0.2

0.4

0.6

0.8

74

128

Daytime Overnight

2008 D-ringsampling

Catch drops off at sunrise

LRSRP and WSEP

Core Program

Population Monitoring

Setline

Fall Gill Net

Telemetry

Aquaculture

Data Management

Habitat Assessment

MBES

ADCP

WQM

Recruitment Failure

Proximate mechanisms

Predation

Food

Contaminants

Larval transport

Flow/Habitat modeling

Empirical testing

Mass Marking

Larval releases2013-2017

WA Co-Managers Operations Plan Outline

Project Specific Components

LRSRP 1995-027-00

• Core Program• Stock Assessment• Sub-yearling gill net• Aquaculture• Telemetry

• Recruitment Failure• Predator assessment• Food availability• Chemical mass marking

WSEP 2008-116-00

• Core Program• Data Management

• Habitat Assessments• Recruitment Failure• Flow/habitat modeling• Contaminant assessments• Larval release experiment

Larval transport hypothesis

Hydro-ops

“Net and Jet”

ProximateMechanisms

Predation

Predator control

Turbidity

Food availability

Increase productivity(fertilization)

Contaminants

CERCLAprocess

Behavioral and sensory impacts

Management Implications/Alternatives

Behavioral and sensory impactsDecreased prey densities

Questions?