A yearly mark-recapture study is done in the Bulkley River at the Moricetown Canyon Falls to estimate the number of adult steelhead. Tagging is done immediately below the falls and the recapture site is at the top of the falls. In 2009 Kintama deployed several acoustic receivers above and below the falls and a sub-sample of the mark-recapture fish was equipped with sonic tags in addition to the standard anchor tags. The study allowed for an investigation of the number of fish that dropped down-river upon release, the amount of time fish spent in the area below the falls, the extent of down- and up-stream travel following release and most importantly, how many fish actually passed the recapture site following tagging. Our study found that only between 56-59% of tagged steelhead were available to recapture and therefore that the mark-recapture abundance estimates would be over-estimated.
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