Table 4. --Sex composition of red salmon captured 

 in index fyke traps in Kenai River, 1957-59 



1957 



1958 



1959 



Date 



Male Female Male Female Male Female 



June 1-7 



8-14 



26 



23 



24 



the escapement is limited unless it can be 

 shown that the samples taken in the traps are 

 representative of the run passing the fishing 

 site; that is, do the traps catch fish in relation 

 to their abundance in the river, and do they 

 provide an unbiased estimate of the size, age 

 composition, and sex ratio of the run? 



Several findings in these studies show that 

 fyke traps do catch red salmon in relation to 

 the numbers present: (1) The timing, dura- 

 tion, and magnitude of the Cook Inlet run as 

 indicated by commercial catches were simi- 

 larly portrayed by fyke trap catches; (2) the 

 numbers of fish caught and the composition of 

 the catch were comparable in fyke traps fished 



in several locations; and (3) the catch in 

 experimental gill nets fluctuated in a manner 

 similar to the catch in fyke traps. 



Comparison of Commercial Catch 

 with Fyke Trap Catches 



The commercial fishery of the Cook Inlet 

 district is one of the most complex in Alaska. 

 It employs four methods of capturing salmon; 



(1) the trap, which was discontinued in 1959, 



(2) the beach seine, which is used mainly on 

 pink and chum salmon in the clear-water 

 areas of the lower inlet, (3) the drift gill 

 net, and (4) the set gill net. 



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