Bering Sea | Fishes and Fish Habitats
Genotyping at sea informs in-season fisheries management in real-time Presenter: Tyler Dann , tyler.dann@alaska.gov, Alaska Department of Fish and Game Natura Richardson , nr51334@gmail.com, Bristol Bay Science and Research Institute Jodi Estrada , jodi.estrada@alaska.gov, Alaska Department of Fish and Game Heather Hoyt , heather.hoyt@alaska.gov, Alaska Department of Fish and Game Michael Link , michael@bbedc.com, Bristol Bay Economic Development Corporation
Bristol Bay sockeye salmon are one of America’s most valuable natural resources and define the economy, ecology, and culture of the region. The record 79 million sockeye salmon that returned to Bristol Bay in 2022 were worth a record $351M to fishermen and billions to the economy after accounting for multiplier effects. The large and temporally compressed run is managed to meet Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G) escapement goals for the nine major drainages of the bay. Mixed stock analysis (MSA) using 24 SNP markers is used to inform in-season management. MSA is conducted on samples from a test fishery that captures fish about seven days before they arrive in fishing districts. Historically, samples taken for genetic analysis were shipped from Port Moller to Anchorage where genotyping was performed at the ADF&G Gene Conservation Laboratory (GCL). The time and effort sailing to port to transport samples takes time away from fishing and increases costs. Here we describe a novel approach of genotyping at sea to circumvent lost time, costs, and weather delay issues. In 2021, samples were processed at sea in tandem with samples at the GCL to validate the approach. A comparison of 38,255 genotypes showed a 98.51% concordance rate between the two labs. The at sea lab was fully implemented and improved upon in 2022. We discuss improvements to the timeline of results, how well at sea estimates predicted inshore run, and potential improvements and other applications for the at sea lab.
Alaska Marine Science Symposium 2023 50
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