North Pacific Anadromous Fish Commission

Technical Report 23

Table of Contents

Pacific Salmon Expansion into the Canadian Arctic Under Rapid Climate Change

Authors:
Karen M. Dunmall, Joseph A. Langan, Curry J. Cunningham, James D. Reist, Humfrey Melling, Aklavik Hunters and Trappers Committee, Olokhaktomiut Hunters and Trappers Committee, Paulatuk Hunters and Trappers Committee, Sachs Harbour Hunters and Trappers Committee, Tuktoyaktuk Hunters and Trappers Committee, and Kugluktuk Hunters and Trappers Organization

Abstract:
Rapid climate change is altering Arctic ecosystems at unprecedented rates. These changes in the physical environment may open new corridors for species range expansions, with substantial implications for subsistence-dependent communities and sensitive ecosystems. Over the past 20 years, rising incidental harvest of five species of Pacific salmon by subsistence fishers has been monitored across a widening range spanning multiple land claim jurisdictions in Arctic Canada. In this study, we connect Indigenous and scientific knowledges to explore potential oceanographic mechanisms facilitating this ongoing northward expansion of Pacific salmon into the western Canadian Arctic. A regression analysis was used to reveal the roles of thermal and sea-ice conditions in the Chukchi and Beaufort seas in creating a seasonal range-expansion corridor for salmon, driving the variation in annual catches reported within this region. Furthermore, there is a body of knowledge to suggest that these conditions, and consequently the presence of Pacific salmon, will become more persistent in the coming decades. Our collaborative approach positions us to document, explore, and explain mechanisms driving changes in salmon ranges that have the potential to, or are already affecting, Indigenous rights-holders in a rapidly warming Arctic.

Citation

Dunmall, K.M., J.A. Langan, C.J. Cunningham, J.D. Reist, H. Melling, Aklavik Hunters and Trappers Committee, Olokhaktomiut Hunters and Trappers Committee, Paulatuk Hunters and Trappers Committee, Sachs Harbour Hunters and Trappers Committee, Tuktoyaktuk Hunters and Trappers Committee, and Kugluktuk Hunters and Trappers Organization.  2024.  Pacific salmon expansion into the Canadian arctic under rapid climate change.  N. Pac. Anadr. Fish Comm. Tech. Rep. 23: 26.