Use of Molecular Genetic Data to Manage Salmon Conservation Programs: Winter-Run Chinook Salmon in California and Winter Steelhead in Washington

Conservation hatcheries are widely used for the recovery or enhancement of small and imperiled populations. A common goal of these hatcheries is to provide a demographic boost to the wild-spawning population, while minimizing negative genetic impacts associated with artificial propagation. Genetic pedigree reconstruction, combined with other biological data collected from naturally spawning adults and naturally produced juveniles, can be used to document the effects and evaluate the success of these programs. For nearly a decade, the USFWS Abernathy Fish Technology Center Conservation Genetics Program has been involved with two such recovery programs. The first is a joint project with Livingston Stone National Fish Hatchery for winter-run Chinook in the Sacramento River, CA. The second is the evaluation of a small conservation hatchery for winter steelhead in Abernathy Creek, WA. This presentation will outline the use of molecular genetic data in broodstock selection, evaluation of natural spawning, and evaluation of the effects of a small conservation hatchery on both the wild and hatchery components of an integrated population.