Status of the Bering-Aleutian Salmon International Survey (BASIS)

摘要

North Americap and Asian salmon that utilize the Bering Sea have declined in recent years. Changes in ocean conditions have occurred and these changes may be responsible for the declines in salmon. In order to understand how these changes influence abundance of salmon, a new research program was initiated in 2002 and coordinated through the North Pacific Anadromous Fish Commission (NPAFC). The Bering-Aleutian Salmon International Survey (BASIS) was developed to learn how salmon respond to variations in ocean conditions caused by climate change. For the first time, scientists from the NPAFC - Canada, Japan, Russia, and the United States - developed a scientific plan and followed through with coordinated surveys of salmon distribution across the entire Bering Sea in 2002 and 2003. Oceanographic observations were made simultaneously with fishing operations. Large trawls, towed near the surface, were used to sample salmon and associated marine forage and prey species.