Response of a spawning population of Spring Chinook salmon to

1. Response of a spawning population of Spring Chinook salmon to flow alteration in a regulated system. Steve Corbett, Mary Moser, Andrew Dittman, Darran May, Donald Larsen

2. Outline • Introduction • Study area • Objectives • Methods- tagging and tracking • Results related to flow alteration • Activities in 2009

3. Yakima Basin • 5 storage reservoirs • 9 diversion dams US Department of Interior, Bureau of Reclamation

4. Radio Telemetry Objectives • Test homing to acclimation sites • Determine holding sites and final spawning locations • Estimate passage time at diversion dam • Gain insight to pre-spawn mortality • Compare final tag locations with results from carcass survey • Measure behavioral response to annual flow alteration event

5. Radio Tagging • Collected and tagged at Roza Dam • May 30-June 11, 2008 119 Adult Spring Chinook Wild n=30 Clark Flat n=29 Jack Creek n=31 Easton n=29 • 60-93 mm total length • 4-5 years of age • Transported 7 km upstream and released

6. Radio Transmitter Characteristics • Transmitter weight < 4% of total body weight • Transmitter implanted intragastrically via esophogus • Band of surgical tubing • 2 mm thickness

7. Jack Creek Acclimation Site Radio Telemetry Fixed Site n=9 Cle Elum River Teanaway River Release Site Big Pines Recreation Area Easton Acclimation Site Clark Flat Acclimation Site Roza Dam Cle Elum Research and Supplementation Facility Upper Yakima River • Radio Tracking • Fixed sites operated June through October • Bi-monthly mobile tracking surveys conducted between June and October

8. Radio Telemetry Fixed Site n=9 Release Site Big Pines Recreation Area Roza Dam Study Area Selah Bridge Downstream Forebay Fallback

9. Fate of Radio Tagged Fish Fallback N=24 (20%) Female N=96 Male N=21 na N=2 Forebay N=21 (18%) 119 Not Contacted N=39 (33%) Downstream of Study Area N=13 (11%) Study Area N=22 (18%) Easton N=5 (23%) Jack Creek N=3 (14%) Clark Flat N=5 (23%) Wild N=9 (40%)

10. Fixed Site Passage - Cumulative Percent • First entry to study area: • 9 days after tagging, Jack Creek • Last entry to study area: • 27 days after tagging, Wild Town Ditch Rkm 263.4 Rkm 293.1 CERSF Rkm 301 Big Pines Rkm 210.8

11. Altered vs. Natural Hydrographs Yakima River @ Cle Elum Average Daily Computed Natural Flow Average Daily Flow • Hockersmith et al. 1994 • Migratory Phase (Apr-Jun) • Pre-spawning holding phase (Jun-Aug) • Spawning phase (Aug-Oct) • Fox et al. 2007 • Implications of Flip-Flop for Spawning Adults US Department of Interior, Bureau of Reclamation

12. Flow Alteration : “Flip Flop” • Annual flow alteration event • Late August to early September • Result of court ruling Yakama Nation v. BOR, 1980 • Purpose: Balance needs of irrigation with spawning salmon • Strategy: • Flows out of Cle Elum Reservoir decreased • Flows out of Rimrock Reservoir increased • Spawning occurs lower in channel less flow required to cover redds • Prevent redds from being dewatered Began in 1982

13. Upper Yakima Basin Flow Dynamics August 18 - September 12, 2008 Lake Cle Elum Lake Kachess 3619 cfs to 241 cfs Cle Elum River 3908 cfs to 542 cfs 296 cfs to 234 cfs Lake Keechelus Yakima River N

14. Did not experience flow alteration, n=9

15. Experienced flow alteration, n=5

16. Did not experience flow alteration RA084 Origin:Wild Female 70 cm June 25 July 7 July 21 Aug 5 Aug 18 Aug 29 Sep 15 *Sep 30 June 27 June 19 Total distance of upstream migration = 103 km # of relocations = 10 May 30 *Tag recovered with post-spawned carcass

17. Experienced flow alteration Sep 15 *Oct 3 RA212 Origin: Clark Flat Female 63 cm July 9 July 21 Aug 6 Aug 18 Aug 29 July 2 Total distance of upstream migration = 85 km # of relocations = 10 June 6 June 4 *Tag recovered with post-spawned carcass

18. Effect of Release Date Study Area 14 of 53 6 of 39 Percentage of radio-tagged fish that reached study area 2 of 27 5/30/08 6/11/08 6/4/08 Release Date

19. Activities in 2009 • Test of tag attachment method • Provide insight to 2008 results • Guide actions in 2010 Esophogeal Implant Tag Retention, Survival External Attachment Untagged Control

20. Conclusions • Final locations of radio-tagged fish occurred where carcass/redd survey results show highest densities. • Homing/straying assessment requires data from larger sample size. • Evidence that flow reduction prompts fish to move upstream. • Some fish migrate upstream of confluence with Cle Elum River and thus do not experience Flip-flop. • Majority of spawners are migrating upstream during artificially low flows in June and artificially high flows in July and August. • More research needed to determine best tag attachment method.

21. Acknowledgements NOAA Fisheries Mark Kaminski Byron Iverson Eric Hockersmith Kinsey Frick Deb Harstad Brian Burke Yakama Nation Fisheries Charlie Strom Mark Johnston Joe Hoptowit Gerald Lewis Vernon Bogar Bureau of Reclamation Scott Kline Ellensburg Water Larry Brown Funding NOAA Northwest Fisheries Science Center

22. Passage at Town Ditch Diversion Dam • Dual antenna array, ~1 km • Low 1 hr. 24 minutes • High 4 days 1 hour 17 minutes • Mean 1 day, 3 hours, 3 minutes

23. Jack Creek Easton CERSF Radio Telemetry Fixed Site Clark Flat Wild Easton Final Locations of Radio Tags as Determined by Surveys Post 9/15 Origin Jack Creek Clark Flat KOA Campground