BPA Fish and Wildlife FY 1997 Proposal

Section 1. Administrative
Section 2. Narrative
Section 3. Budget

see CBFWA and BPA funding recommendations

Section 1. Administrative

Title of project
Nutrition and Feeding Methods for Captive Reared Pacific Salmon

BPA project number   5502900

Business name of agency, institution or organization requesting funding
USFWS

Sponsor type   WA-Federal Agency

Proposal contact person or principal investigator

BPA technical contact   , EWN

Biological opinion ID   Hatchery Biological Opinion

NWPPC Program number   6.3A, 6.3B, 6.3C, 7.4D.2

Short description
Ongoing Captive broodstock programs have identified broodstock nutrition as an area requiring further attention. With our state of the art feed processing equipment we will work to develop and test open formula diets for each life phase to support captive broodstocks programs. We will also evaluate the feeding methods for these diets.

Project start year   1997    End year   2005

Start of operation and/or maintenance   0

Project development phase   Planning

Section 2. Narrative

Related projects
Development of open formula soft moist extruded diet for Pacific salmon fingerlings.(planning underway)

Lower Snake River Compensation Plan Program: Artificial propagation and evaluation program for salmon and steelhead in the Salmon and Clearwater Basins.

Grande Ronde Basin Spring chinook captive broodstock Project: Evaluates use of captive breeding techniques to reduce probabilility of extinction, preserve genetic resources of target populations.


Research and Recovery of Snake River Sockeye Salmon: Evaluates use of captive breeding techniques to reduce probability of extinction and boost production of Snake River Sockeye populations.

Project history
N/A

Biological results achieved
N/A

Annual reports and technical papers
N/A

Management implications
N/A

Specific measureable objectives
1. Develop extruded diets capable of supporting captively reared broodstock in fresh and salt water.

2. Develop fresh water facilities for evaluating and testing broodstock diets.

3. Evaluate the effects of broodstock diets on condition indexes such as fecundity, offspring viability, growth , syncronization of spawning time, and morphological characteristics.

Testable hypothesis
An open formula diet can be developed for captive broodstock capable of producing levels of fecundity and offspring
viability better than those achieved with available closed formula diets.

Underlying assumptions or critical constraints
Surrogates of the same species will react to nutritional manipulations similarly to endangered strains.
Suitable facilities can be identified to conduct broodstock nutrition studies.
Suitable quality ingredients are available on the open market to produce a successful broodstock diet.
Asssume that low fecundity and offspring viability seen in captive broodstocks are due to nutrition factors rather
physical rearing conditions such as water quality or tank space.

Constraints:
Money, FTE'S, Facilities and water.

Methods
Nonendangered Spring chinook salmon (e.g. Carson Stock) will be used as surrogates to conduct standard nutritional studies to evaluate performance of open formula broodstock diets developed at Abernathy. The fish will be held in well water in 4' circular tanks for up to two years. A single screw extruder with all of the ancillary equipment will be in place for production of the test diets. Larger tanks and facilities will be needed to conduct studies at the sub adult and adult stages of development. Detailed experimental design , facility requirements and numbersof adults needed to obtain statistically significant results will be determined during the initial planning year.

Brief schedule of activities
Our new feed processing lab and equipment installation will be completed by December 1996. In FY 1997 the project will be planned and staff will be trained in the operation and maintenance of the new feed processing equipment. Determinations will be made concerning any equipment requirements and construction needs for the broodstock program. A literature review will be done and a detailed experimental protocol will be written. Feeding studies will be initiated in 1998 using the existing facilities while the additional facilities, building and 20' tanks are constructed and acquired.

Biological need
Captive broodstock programs are being started to conserve threatened and endangered runs of chinook salmon in the Snake and upper Columbia River basin. Already problems are being noted such as lower fecundity, offspring viability, growth, synchronization of spawning time, and morphological characteristics of the captive broodstock that could be related to nutrition. If a captive broodstock program is to be a success, nutrition research is essential. Open fomula diets are needed for both the salt and fresh water captive broodstock programs to allow managers to quickly respond when broodstock nutrition problems are identified. All the captive rearing programs currently underway ar being treated as experiments with endangered stocks being held at both fresh and salt water sites. The use of closed formula diets in these studies adds one more unknown to the rearing program. The use of commercial diets further complicates the situatation as manufacturers use least cost diet formulation processers that allow for substituion of ingredients from lot to lot.

Critical uncertainties
The uncertainty is that brood diets can be developed in time to support the programs currently underway.

Summary of expected outcome
The expected outcome of this project is a greater understanding of the nutritional needs of adult salmon. With this information open formula broodstock diets can be produced to meet the needs of Pacific salmon .

Dependencies/opportunities for cooperation
The testing of experimental diets for salt water programs will require cooperation with an agency with access to a salt water rearing sites.
This project will be designed to support the activities of all salmonid captive broodstock programs in the region. It's success will depend on strong ties and interactions with these programs.
Permits will need to be obtained to be able to increase effluent discharge and bring surrogate spring chinook to Abernathy for experimentation.

Risks
Hopefully, by using surrogates the risks for this project will be reduced. The diet formulations and feeding methods can be determined with nonendangered fish before they are used with the endangered broodstock.
It is possible that a feeding program cannot be developed to meet the specific requirements for each broodstock program using formulated diets.

Monitoring activity
In the planning stage, FY1997, a complete monitoring and evaluation plan will be developed.

Section 3. Budget

* For most projects, Authorized is the amount recommended by CBFWA and the Council. Planned is amount currently allocated. Contracted is the amount obligated to date of printout.

Funding recommendations

CBFWA funding review group   System Policy

Recommendation    Tier 2 - fund when funds available

Recommended funding level   $210,800