Author(s): J. Emil Morhardt; Peter F. Baker
Linked Author(s): Peter Baker
Keywords: No Keywords
Abstract: Great loss of young chinook salmon from the San Joaquin River tributaries occurs during the downstream migration through the lower reaches of the tributaries and the Delta, where smolt numbers decline by an order of magnitude. Mortality in the Delta is consistently twice as high for smolts migrating down Old River (past the export pumps) as for smolts continuing in the San Joaquin River past Stockton -- since this is essentially the only unambiguous result ever obtained about San Joaquin smolt survival in the Delta, migration into Old River appears to be the main controllable determinant of Delta mortality, and retaining the fish in San Joaquin River with a barrier in the head of Old River is the most obvious strategy to improve Delta survival.
Year: 1997