The ocean conditions experienced by juvenile pacific salmon during their first months at sea influence their survival, but the mechanisms that lead to their success or failure are not well understood

As such, there is a high degree of uncertainty about how future ocean conditions, especially novel ecosystem states, will impact the survival of pacific salmon. One mechanistic link that relates to juvenile salmon growth and survival is the quantity and quality of their food when they first enter the ocean. This project will develop new indicators of food quality at the base of the marine food web that can be related to salmon survival to better parameterize salmon life cycle models, improving estimates of growth, survival, and adult return forecasts. To develop the indicators, oregon state university (OSU) researchers will monitor phytoplankton community composition using a robotic microscope (imaging flow cytobot [ifcb]) during routine fisheries and ecosystem surveys. The information from these efforts will be used in conjunction with fatty acid analyses to develop indicators of the nutritional value of lower trophic levels supporting juvenile salmon.