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Counting Facilities
- North Coast
The Babine River Counting Fence
The Docee
River Counting Fence
The
Kitwanga River Salmon Enumeration Facility
The Meziadin
Fishway
Nisga’a
Fisheries In-Season Update [pdf]
Counting Facilities
One of the foundations
of both fisheries management and stock assessment is a count of adult
salmon returning to their natal streams to spawn. This information can tell
a fish manager what effect management actions taken during the season had
on the run. If the spawning beds are close enough to the fishing grounds,
as in most coastal stocks, salmon counts directly influence whether
openings occur. The count of adult spawners is a
direct measurement of the health of the stock.
There are many ways
that salmon are counted. Counts are made by walking along stream banks and
observing the fish, or by flying in either fixed wing aircraft or
helicopter. Fences are constructed on various systems to count the salmon
as they move up the stream or river. Statistical methods such as mark
– recapture are used in some cases, using fishwheels,
beach seines, or other means. In some cases the
"Dead Pitch" is performed. This procedure consists of the crew
walking down a stream, after spawning has started and counting dead fish as
they proceed. Each dead fish is marked (usually by cutting in half) so as
not to count them a second time during further inspection walks.
Follow the links on
this page to some of our larger counting facilities. There are other fences
and facilities in the north, and in time more links may be added, but for
now, these are the counting facilities that are most important for both
fish management and stock assessment.
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