108 



FISHERY BULLETIN OF THE FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE 



longer time intervals, but these have been selected carefully on the basis of facts 

 apparent from the tabulations made on a weekly interval. The use of relatively 

 short time intervals has been important because of the considerable fluctuation in 

 the commercial value of the salmon, particularly chinooks, during the season. The 

 spring fish, entering the river during the period from April to the early part of August 

 are much more valuable than those running later in the season. Furthermore, the 

 magnitude of the run varies greatly from week to week and some portions of the run 

 are far more seriously depleted than others. The intensity of fishing also varies, 

 and the closed seasons tend to favor certain portions of the run and leave others 

 practically unprotected from intensive exploitation. The commercial and biological 

 importance of the various portions of the run of each species must, therefore, be 

 determined independently, and to do this a relatively short time interval is essential. 

 Because the fishing season begins May 1, the first week in May has been taken as the 

 point of departure, and the weekly intervals, both before and after, are arranged to 

 conform to this. 



Table 1. — Catch of chinook salmon in the Columbia River, 198S 



i Outside may Include some fish caught by troll inside the river and along the coast from Neah Bay to Coos Bay. 



> The season on the river closed on August 25. 



' The fall season opened at noon on September 10 and on that, day 450 pounds were delivered in Zone 4 and 93,83. pounds in 

 Zono 6. Since these catches represented a fishing period of only one-half day, they have been added to the catches of the following 

 week. 



