Wild salmon are under great stress from climate change, making it vital to find new ways to help them adapt and remain resilient. Genomic methods can discover the diversity that gives salmon this adaptive potential. This information, when co-developed with Indigenous rightsholders and fishery managers, can inform the creation of proactive plans for management, restoration and conservation.

This project will use whole genome sequencing and genome-wide association analysis of new and existing sockeye salmon samples from a diverse range of watersheds to find markers for two key traits.

First, run-timing – which refers to the specific time of year when adult salmon migrate from the ocean into rivers to spawn. This trait is well-described for other salmon species but is not well understood in sockeye salmon. Yet it is critical to determine a salmon population’s exposure to climate risks.

Second, is a focus on river-type sockeye, a poorly understood ecotype (a population within a species that is adapted to local environmental conditions) in sockeye salmon that spawns in rivers instead of lakes and then migrates to the ocean after a short rearing period. This adaptation appears to be key to the species’ long-term survival and ability to adapt to rapid changes. Current genetic monitoring for river-type sockeye populations is limited because existing genetic tools (marker panels) were designed for lake-type sockeye and aren’t effective at distinguishing the relatively lower levels of differentiation observed among river-type sockeye.

Researchers from Simon Fraser University, in partnership with five First Nations, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, the Wild Salmon Center and the Coastal Rivers Conservancy, will identify genomic markers for sockeye salmon run-timing and the river-type sockeye ecotype to improve accuracy of genetic stock identification. This work will enable and accelerate proactive fisheries management and recovery actions that foster the diversity, adaptation and resilience of sockeye salmon for the benefit of ecosystems, cultures and economies.