Chum Salmon – Coastal SMU (Pacific Coast ESU)

Overview

Species Common Name Chum Salmon
Species Scientific Name Oncorhynchus keta
SMU/ ESU/ DPS/Subspecies Coastal SMU (Pacific Coast ESU)
State Listing Status Sensitive

Ecoregions

Coast Range

Oregon's Coast Range, known for its dramatic scenery, is extremely diverse, with habitats ranging from open sandy dunes to lush forests and from tidepools to headwater streams. It follows the coastline and extends east through coastal forest to the border of the Willamette Valley and Klamath Mountains ecoregions

Nearshore

The Nearshore ecoregion includes a variety of habitats ranging from submerged high-relief rocky reefs to broad expanses of intertidal mudflats in estuaries and hosts a vast array of fish, invertebrates, marine mammals, birds, plants, and micro-organisms. This ecoregion encompasses the area from the outer boundary of Oregon's Territorial Sea to the supra-tidal zone, and up into the estuaries.

Special needs

Require stream gravel bars with cold, upwelling seeps or springs and side channels near tidewaters for spawning.
Fry migrate to ocean soon after emergence and use edge habitat for cover.
Productive nearshore marine habitat that provides high-quality prey in sufficient quantity for rapid growth at time of ocean entry.

Limiting factors

Alterations of hydrology and watershed function.
Fish passage, especially barriers low in the watershed.
Marine survival.
Loss of estuarine habitat.
Fry very susceptible to mortality from Ceratonova shasta, which is more prevalent in higher water temperatures.

Data gaps

Population dynamics.
Population genetics.
Distribution and abundance in coastal streams and Oregon marine waters.
Fisheries-dependent data to determine bycatch and mortality in fisheries.
Carrying capacity of occupied streams.
Competition with other salmonids.
Predation at all life stages.
Unknown what types of habitat restoration projects specifically benefit Chum.
Defined population recovery numbers.

Conservation actions

Maintain or restore aquatic, estuarine, and riparian habitat.
Continue ongoing restoration efforts involving landowners, tribes, and agency partners (NOAA, NMFS, ODFW, OWEB, Watershed Councils, SWCD, Wild Salmon Center).
Manage for population sustainability.

Key reference or plan

ODFW Fish Conservation Plans Read Here