Stock-Specific Movement and Distribution of Juvenile Chinook Salmon, Oncorhynchus tshawytscha, in Sandy Beach Surf Zones of Oregon and Washington, USA

To the best of our knowledge, one or more authors of this paper were federal employees when contributing to this work. This is the publisher’s final pdf. The article is copyrighted by the Coastal and Estuarine Research Federation and published by Springer. It can be found at: http://link.springer.com/journal/12237Sandy beach surf zones serve as alternative nursery habitats for juvenile Chinook salmon (0 age) during their early marine residency, a period considered critical due to high and variable mortality rates. Despite the importance of early marine residence, the extent of juvenile salmon surf zone use and movement along sandy beaches is not well understood. Juvenile Chinook salmon distribution and movement were studied in shallow surf zone habitats by sampling from 2006 to 2010 with a beach seine 11 beaches adjacent and distant to four estuary mouths in Oregon and Washington, USA. The estuary of origin of each juvenile was determined using genetic stock identification methods and coded wire tags. Surf zones sampled were within littoral cells, which are stretches of the coastline bordered by rocky headlands, and included estuaries with and without Chinook salmon populations. Juvenile salmonids were only collected at littoral cells with Chinook-inhabited watersheds. Most juveniles (95 %) were present at sandy beaches adjacent (