Salmon Steward

14 spring/summer 2020 psf.ca JEREMY KORESKI; MARIA CATANZARO FORAGE FISH MONITORING Supporting the work being done by the Mount Arrowsmith Biosphere Group & World Wildlife Fund, this initiative will enhance mapping of beach and nearshore spawning areas for crucial forage fish, such as Pacific sandlance and surf smelt. These species are two examples of forage fish that are critical sources of prey for roughly 45 species in the Strait of Georgia, including wild salmon. Currently, forage fish spawning habitat is protected as "fish habitat" under the Canadian Fisheries Act; however, British Columbia has T he Salish Sea Marine Survival Project (SSMSP), spearheaded by now-retired CEO Dr. Brian Riddell in 2009 (and supported by PSF's volunteer board of directors), has been one of our most successful scientific research endeavours to date. The SSMSP's original goal was to determine the key causes of the precipitous declines of Chinook and Coho that occurred in the late '90s within the Strait of Georgia. These declines resulted in a ban on retention of wild Coho salmon and historically low catches of Chinook. Other concurrent and significant losses identified in the Strait included reduction of eelgrass and kelp, contraction of forage fish spawning habitats, and nearshore and estuary degradation. Key results to date for SSMSP have identified the importance of intact, connected and healthy nearshore habitats, and a number of new projects have been funded to address those concerns. Additional ecosystem research and habitat restoration projects have been developed based on previous findings and will be implemented as a key component of the new PSF Strategic Plan. In sum, these projects all have the intended outcome of increased production for Chinook and Coho salmon populations. Here are a few PSF-funded projects focused on estuaries and nearshore habitats that are being implemented this year: The next phase of PSF's historic Pacific salmon conservation initiative hones in on preserving nearshore habitats SALISH SEA MARINE SURVIVAL PROJECT 2.0 Maria Catanzaro at Washington's Joemma Beach State Park researching eelgrass transplanting methods and experiments. little research documenting confirmed locations. Therefore, the data from this program could inform habitat protection designations for these crucial organisms. This project is the beginning of a new and major citizen science initiative throughout the Salish Sea that will conserve these species and the habitat necessary for their production. EELGRASS AND KELP Eelgrass and kelp beds provide essential nearshore habitat and help to lower water temperatures for juvenile salmon. Working with University of Victoria researcher Dr. Maycira Costa and Simon Fraser University scientist Dr. Sherryl Bisgrove, this initiative will allow for identification of resilient kelp stocks within the Salish Sea as well as the development of a biodiversity bank for marine plants and macroalgae. Kelp stocks identified as "resilient" and which appear to have persisted over time will be candidates for protection, as they are likely important source populations for re-establishment. The project will collect this information using satellite remote

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