Cross-tributary analysis of parr to smolt recruitment of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar)

Abstract

We used estimates of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) parr and smolt density, estimated in three tributaries of the West River, Vermont, U.S.A., to determine (i) if smolt recruitment is density dependent or independent of parr density, (ii) if the proportion of parr migrating as smolts and cohort survival differ among tributaries, and (iii) the effect of parr maturity on smolt production and recruitment variability. We found that parr to smolt recruitment was best described with a linear function providing no evidence for density dependence in the recruitment dynamics of parr and smolts at the tributary scale. The proportion of age-1 parr recruiting to age-2 smolts did not systematically differ among tributaries or years (overall mean ± 95% CL: 18 ± 11%, range = 9-37%), and mean age-1 to age-2 survival ranged less than twofold among tributaries (27-46%) and was independent of cohort density. Survival of age-1 mature (39%) and immature (33%) parr was similar, but probability of smolting for mature parr (0.21) was threefold less than for immature parr (0.76). Quantifying smolt recruitment pathways involving parr maturation helped elucidate the population-level effect of parr maturation on smolt production and recruitment variability.