Coherence among Oregon Coast coho salmon populations highlights increasing relative importance of marine conditions for productivity

Abstract

Anadromous fishes, such as Pacific salmon, spend portions of their life cycle in freshwater and marine systems, thus rendering them susceptible to a variety of natural and anthropogenic stressors. These stressors operate at different spatiotemporal scales, whereby freshwater conditions are more likely to impact single populations or subpopulations, while marine conditions are more likely to act on entire evolutionarily significant units (ESUs). Coherence in population parameters like survival and productivity can therefore serve as an indicator of relative influence. The goal of this study was to elucidate scale-dependent shifts in Oregon Coast coho salmon productivity. We used a multivariate state-space approach to analyze almost 60 years of stock-recruitment data for the Oregon Coast ESU. Analyses were conducted separately for time periods prior to and after 1990 to account for improvements in abundance estimation methods and significant changes in conservation and management strategies. Prior to 1990, productivity declined for most Oregon Coast populations, especially through the 1980s. From 1990–onward, coherence increased, and trends tracked closely with the North Pacific Gyre Oscillation (NPGO). The latter period is associated with reductions in harvest rates and hatchery production such that the relative influence of the marine environment may have grown more apparent following the removal of these stressors. Furthermore, the link between productivity and NPGO is consistent with trends observed for several other Pacific salmon ESUs. If Oregon Coast coho salmon populations become more synchronous, managers can expect to face new challenges driven by reductions in the population portfolio effect and increasingly variable marine conditions due to climate change.