The International Sampling Program: continent of origin and biological characteristics of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) collected at West Greenland in 2020 and 2021

• Main Authors: Sheehan, Timothy F., Gargan, Paddy, Kerr, Brendan, Nevoux, Marie, Ravn, Malu, Nygaard, Rasmus, Bradbury, Ian R., Robertson, Marta J., Maoiléidigh, Niall O.
• Format: Report
• Language: English
• Published: 2024
• Subjects: Greenland; Atlantic salmon; North Atlantic; Salmo salar
• Online Access: https://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00907/101903/113001.pdf; https://doi.org/10.25923/wdw0-qw28; https://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00907/101903/

An Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) mixed-stock fishery generally operating from August through October exists off the coast of Greenland and primarily harvests 1 sea-winter (1SW) North American and European origin salmon destined to return to natal waters as 2 sea-winter (2SW) spawning adults. To collect data on the biological characteristics and origin of the harvest necessary for international stock assessment efforts, parties to the North Atlantic Salmon Conservation Organization’s (NASCO) West Greenland Commission (WGC) agreed to participate in an international sampling program for the 2020 and 2021 fisheries. Due to the ongoing restrictions and uncertainty related to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2020 traditional sampling program involving international collaborators traveling to Greenland and sampling the harvest was canceled. As an alternative, a contingency plan was developed which involved providing sampling kits to Greenland’s Fisheries License Control Authority (GFLK) Wildlife Officers, staff at the Greenland Institute of Nature Resources (GINR), and individual fishers throughout Greenland in an attempt to develop a Citizen Science sampling effort. In 2021, the traditional sampling program was again implemented, and international collaborators traveled to Greenland and sampled the harvest. Sampling kits were also provided to staff at the GINR, and the Citizen Science was modified and pursued. Reported landings were 31.7 metric tons (t) in 2020 and 41.0 t in 2021. In 2020, only 197 samples were collected whereas 1,548 were collected in 2021. The collected samples represented approximately 1% and 17% of the reported landings in 2020 and 2021, respectively. Delays in collating the 2020 samples resulted in the samples not being shipped to the North American collaborators in time for sample processing and summation prior to the 2021 International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) Working Group on North Atlantic Salmon (WGNAS) meeting. Delays also occurred in 2021, resulting in only a portion of the ...