Modeling Optimal Egg Planting Scenarios for Atlantic Salmon in Eastern Maine, USA Using Production Possibility Frontiers.

Atkinson, Ernie*^1,2, Joseph Zydlewski^2,3, ¹Maine Department of Marine Resources, Jonesboro, ME, ²Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Conservation Biology, University of Maine, Orono, ³U.S. Geological Survey, Maine Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, University of Maine, Orono, ME

The Gulf of Maine Distinct Population Segment of Atlantic salmon has suffered from habitat loss and exploitation over the last century. Hatchery supplementation has unquestionably prevented the extirpation of the species, but stocking methods represent tradeoffs between survival, domestication, and logistics. Egg planting maximizes wild rearing opportunities which can be important for adaptation. This method, however, is logistically demanding and requires significant labor over a large spatial scale but a short temporal scale dictated by the ontogeny of the fish. This project builds on a previous study where fertilized eggs were hydraulically planted into selected reaches across the Narraguagus, Pleasant and Machias Rivers located in Eastern Maine and the resulting 0+ parr dispersal was modeled. Corresponding habitat data was collected to categorize the general habitat suitability of reaches for egg planting based on published models. These dispersal patterns and habitat relationships were then used to develop a suite of scenarios modeled on the Machias River. These scenarios were then compared using Production Possibility Frontiers to identify optimal planting locations within the Machias River.