Predicting coastal cutthroat trout molt productive capacity from physiographic variables
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Issue Date
2016-12-13
Editor
Authors
Burns, Christopher Wayne
License
Subject
coastal cutthroat trout
productive capacity
smolt
watershed
productive capacity
smolt
watershed
Abstract
For the management of anadromous coastal cutthroat trout, fisheries managers require an understanding of how physiographic variables, at a watershed scale, influence cutthroat smolt productive capacity. The primary purpose was to produce a practical desktop procedure to reliably predict smolt abundance based upon physiographic variables. A total of 653 annual
estimates of smolt abundance from 50 watersheds in British Columbia and Washington State were assessed in this study. Cutthroat dominated reaches were identified using hydrology and mapping data, then modelled to predict smolt abundance. The model results found primarily that smolt abundance was weakly correlated with permanent stream length of 0-4% channel gradient
and lake area of 0-5 ha. The results suggest that smolt abundance is limited partially by the availability of physical habitat within a watershed. The model performance could have been influenced by uncertainties related to the species life history diversity, identification, and undocumented barriers to fish movement.