DRAFT 2023 Summer Mark-Selective Recreational Chinook Fisheries In Marine Areas 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12 and 13: Post-season Report

In the marine environments of the Strait of Juan de Fuca and Puget Sound, abundant runs of hatchery Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) have been mixed with depressed stocks of natural-origin Chinook salmon for many years. Providing recreational anglers with opportunities to harvest abundant hatchery stocks while simultaneously protecting weaker, natural-origin stocks has proven to be a significant conservation and management challenge. The combination of large-scale hatchery marking (i.e., adipose fin clipping) programs and mark-selective harvest regulations makes it possible for anglers to pursue and harvest hatchery Chinook salmon while minimally impacting natural-origin salmon populations. In such “mark-selective fisheries” (MSFs), recreational anglers are allowed to retain adipose-fin clipped (“marked”) hatchery fish and are required to release unharmed any unclipped (“unmarked”, predominantly natural-origin) salmon that are encountered.

Since the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) implemented the first mark-selective Chinook salmon fisheries in Marine Areas 5 and 6 (Strait of Juan de Fuca) in 2003 based on state-tribal agreements (Thiesfeld and Hagen-Breaux 2005a, 2005b, & 2006; WDFW 2008a), mark-selective Chinook salmon fishing regulations have been implemented in multiple Marine Areas in Puget Sound during both the summer and winter seasons.

During the 2023 summer season, May through September, WDFW implemented mark-selective Chinook salmon fisheries in Marine Areas 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12 and 13. The Chinook MSF seasons in each area were scheduled as follows, though note that in some Areas management criteria were met prior to the end date and closed early:

• Marine Area 5 from July 1 through August 15, 2023
• Marine Area 6 from July 1 through August 15, 2023
• Marine Area 7 from July 13 through July 31, 2023 (3-day openers)
• Marine Area 9 from July 13 through July 31, 2023 (3-day openers)
• Marine Area 10 from July 13 through August 31, 2023
• Marine Area 11 from June 1 through September 30, 2023
• Marine Area 12 from July 10 through September 30, 2023
• Marine Area 13 from May 1 through September 30, 2023