Sockeye salmon population dynamics over the past 4000\xa0years in Upper Russian Lake, south-central Alaska

Abstract

Stable nitrogen isotope (δ15N) data from sediment cores taken in clear-water Upper Russian Lake (Kenai River Watershed, Alaska, USA) indicate that sockeye salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka) populations varied significantly over the past 4000 years, with a prominent ~ 650-year period of lower salmon abundance from ~ 100 BCE to 550 CE. Sediment characteristics during this ~ 650-year interval reflect glacial sediment input, which may have contributed to the salmon decline by degrading spawning habitat and reducing carrying capacity. The decline, however, coincides with large reductions in sockeye salmon abundance identified previously in Karluk and Akalura lakes on Kodiak Island, > 400 km southwest, supporting the possibility of regionally synchronous, multi-centennial production regimes that may originate from shifts in oceanographic conditions such as biological productivity in the northeastern Pacific Ocean. Under such a scenario, coincidence with watershed glacial activity indicates a common driver, i.e. regional climate change. Climate conditions that led to significant glacial advances in this part of the Kenai Peninsula (cold and/or wet conditions) may have also created unfavorable ocean conditions during critical periods in the marine phase for these stocks of Gulf of Alaska sockeye salmon. Future climate projections and management strategies should focus on how climate regimes impact not only prey availability for salmon at sea, but also local conditions for spawners and juveniles.