Population Structure of Columbia River Basin Chinook Salmon and Steelhead Trout, Technical Report 2001.

The population structure of chinook salmon and steelhead trout is presented as an assimilation of the life history forms that have evolved in synchrony with diverse and complex environments over their Pacific range. As poikilotherms, temperature is described as the overwhelming environmental influence that determines what life history options occur and where they are distributed. The different populations represent ecological types referred to as spring-, summer-, fall, and winter-run segments, as well as stream- and ocean-type, or stream- and ocean-maturing life history forms. However, they are more correctly described as a continuum of forms that fall along a temporal cline related to incubation and rearing temperatures that determine spawn timing and juvenile residence patterns. Once new habitats are colonized, members of the founding populations spread through adaptive evolution to assume complementary life history strategies. The related population units are collectively referred to as a metapopulation, and members most closely associated within common temporal and geographic boundaries are designated as first-order metapopulations. Population structure of chinook salmon and steelhead in the Columbia Basin, therefore, is the reflection of the genetic composition of the founding source or sources within the respective region, shaped by the environment, principally temperature, that defines life history evolutionary strategy to maximize fitness under the conditions delineated. The complexity of structure rests with the diversity of opportunities over the elevations that exist within the Basin. Consistent with natural selection, rather than simply attempting to preserve populations, the challenge is to provide opportunities to expand their range to new or restored habitat that can accommodate genetic adaptation as directional environmental changes are elaborated. Artificial propagation can have a critical role in this process, and the emphasis must be placed on promoting the ability for anadromous salmonids to respond to change by assuring that the genetic diversity to facilitate such responses is present. The key in developing an effective recovery program for chinook salmon and steelhead is to recognize that multiple life history forms associated with temperature characterize the species in the Columbia Basin, and recovery measures taken must address the biological requirements of the population unit within the environmental template identified. Unless such measures are given first and highest priority, establishment of biologically self-sustaining populations will be restrained