An Estimate of Ocean Mortality of Bristol Bay Sockeye Salmon Three Years at Sea

The method of population estimation based on change in composition of a dichotomous population was applied to Bristol Bay sockeye salmon to estimate the mortality rate of 3-ocean (3 years at sea) fish during their final year in the ocean. A difference in freshwater age composition between 1-ocean immatures in 1964 and 2-ocean immatures in 1965 was evident in samples taken in the high seas. This difference was apparently due to a greater tendency of 2-freshwater fish than 1-freshwater fish to mature after 2 years at sea. The known quantities of these two freshwater categories in the mature 2-ocean run of 1965 enabled an estimate of the population of 2-ocean immatures at sea in 1965. From this estimate and the quantity of 3-ocean matures in the 1966 run, the annual mortality rate was estimated to be.42.