Reintroduction is an important tool for the recovery of imperiled species. For threatened Pacific salmonids ( spp.) species, hatchery-origin (HOR) individuals from a nearby source are often used to reestablish populations in vacant, historically occupied habitat. However, this approach is challenged by the relatively low reproductive success that HOR Pacific salmonids experience when they spawn in the wild, relative to their natural-origin (NOR) counterparts. In this study, we used genetic parentage analysis to compare the reproductive success of three groups of adult Chinook salmon () reintroduced above Cougar Dam on the South Fork McKenzie River, Oregon: HOR Chinook salmon from an integrated stock; first-generation, wild-born descendants (hereafter s) of Chinook salmon produced at the same hatchery; and NOR Chinook salmon that are presumed to have been produced below the dam, on the mainstem McKenzie River, or elsewhere and volitionally entered a trap below Cougar Dam. We found that s produced nearly as many adult offspring as NORs, and 1.8-fold more adult offspring than HORs. This result suggests that, for the South Fork McKenzie reintroduction program, a single generation in the wild increases fitness for the descendants of HOR Chinook salmon. Although these results are encouraging, care must be taken before extrapolating our results to other systems.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
|---|---|
| http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11009425 | PMC |
| http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/eva.13678 | DOI Listing |
Publication Analysis
Top Keywords
Similar Publications
Want AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?
Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!