Assessment of wild resource usage in commercial Chinook salmon aquaculture using stable isotopes

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While the culture of Atlantic salmon currently dominates Canadian salmon aquaculture (94% of production), Pacific species such as Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) are increasingly attractive to producers due to their niche market price advantage, their higher disease and parasite resistance and their native species status in BC. However, despite these advantages, it is also possible that the native species may more readily feed upon familiar native prey, inadvertently impacting wild salmon stocks. Yellow Island Aquaculture Ltd. (YIAL) is a fully organic Chinook salmon hatchery and farm located on Quadra Island, BC. Started in 1985, YIAL remains the oldest, continuously-owned Pacific salmon farm in BC producing niche-market, high-quality specialty products. Since the 1990s, YIAL has been at the forefront of initiating integrative research in salmon production and conservation. One of the ongoing issues potentially limiting production capacity is the