ADMINISTRATIVE SUMMARY

2015 is planned as the last year of the implementation of this project.  Primary objectives for all contracts under this project will be to complete all data analysis and cooperate in development and writing of finals reports.


For the majority of the tasks for this contract (January 1, 2015 to December 31, 2015), the project is completing work in the third and final phase of the design.  During the 2015 contract year, the ISS project will move into an analysis phase and will complete final analyses and produce draft versions of the completion report.  All other tasks described in the 2015 SOW and the work elements are simply a continuation of the project's coordination, analysis and reporting requirements.
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Fish tagging and marking play important roles in stock assessment, research, management, and recovery of salmonid and other fishes in the Basin.  Results from tagging investigations influence decisions on hydrosystem management such as water spill at dams and fish transport; harvest regimes in the ocean and river; hatchery practices; and endangered species risk assessment.

This Statement of Work for contract year 2015 (Jan - Dec 2015) includes synthesis of research activities and tasks completed by all cooperating agencies.

The ISS program began in 1992.  In 2005, to respond to ISRP recommendations, the program’s data sets were assessed, and the original ISS study design was updated.  The data set review indicated the data would be sufficient to address the program’s two main goals and that the ANOVA technique proposed in the original study design would be appropriate for much of the analysis.  Alternatively, regression and graphical techniques were also developed for some data sets as recommended by the ISRP.  The effect of general production hatchery strays into ISS study streams was also addressed in the updated study design.  Additional carcass collections were initiated to better quantify the magnitude of this unintended supplementation and will be continued throughout the remainder of the program.  We also developed a supplemental proposal to use microsatellite DNA parentage analyses to address the relative reproductive success of natural, supplementation, and general production fish in a subset of study streams.  However, this would represent a large and costly commitment by the region, and would require additional funds.


The Shoshone-Bannock Tribes have collected data from juvenile Chinook salmon at the East Fork Salmon River and Valley Creek of the Salmon River.  Chinook salmon redd counts have been conducted on Herd Creek (tributary to the East Fork Salmon River), the East Fork Salmon River, West Fork of the Yankee Fork, Valley Creek, and Bear Valley Creek.  Data collected from these streams are included in final analysis and production of the ISS completion report.