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Survival, travel time, and use of migration routes by juvenile steelhead in a modified river estuary

Estuaries and Coasts
By: , , , and 
https://doi.org/10.1007/s12237-025-01493-5

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Abstract

Greater understanding of the survival, travel time, and spatial distribution of juvenile salmonids among migration routes between their natal streams and the ocean is critical to the recovery of these threatened species. In the Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta (Delta), a highly modified estuary in central California, USA, there is a critical need to evaluate how water management (e.g., water pumping) and environmental factors (e.g., water flow) impact these populations. While management actions can affect some environmental variables in the Delta, only recently have studies begun to uncover associations between these variables and key demographic parameters. In this study, we examine the effects of freshwater flows, water exports, tidal environment, and a temporary barrier on juvenile steelhead (Oncorhynchus mykiss) survival, travel times, and migration routing using a multiyear acoustic telemetry dataset and recent advancements in Bayesian multistate mark-recapture modeling. We found that no single covariate explained variation in juvenile steelhead population dynamics across the entire Delta, but that separate regions within the Delta showed association with specific environmental factors.

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Publication type Article
Publication Subtype Journal Article
Title Survival, travel time, and use of migration routes by juvenile steelhead in a modified river estuary
Series title Estuaries and Coasts
DOI 10.1007/s12237-025-01493-5
Volume 48
Publication Date February 27, 2025
Year Published 2025
Language English
Publisher Springer
Contributing office(s) Western Fisheries Research Center
Description 75, 18 p.
Country United States
State California
Other Geospatial San Joaquin River Delta
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