The mvtf fall season test fishery is one of the projects used by ADF & g and USFWS to determine fall chum and coho salmon run strength and timing

The mvtf project is strategically located between two ADF & g assessment projects that are separated by over 100 river miles and approximately 3 salmon travel days. This project provides the first composite assessment of the run after the stocks pass through the lower yukon test fisheries and merge into the mainstem from the three different distributaries but before the fish pass the mainstem sonar project near pilot station. In conjunction with the lytf and mainstem sonar, the fall season mvtf project will, in part, provide a comparative and timelier assessment of the inseason salmon run strengths and run timings as the salmon runs pass through the lower river. This project will also provide additional insight into the expected fall chum and coho salmon run strengths at the mainstem sonar site. Age, SEX, size data from this project will be used in conjunction with the lytf to provide insight into the characteristics of the test net catch, the subsistence harvest, and possibly the overall run information from the mvtf project could also be used in conjunction with other project data to adjust or verify the species composition and run sizes of the salmon runs that were based on the mainstem sonar test fishery either inseason or post season. Additionally, the fall season mvtf project serves as a check on the other two lower river run assessment projects and vice versa. Further, for the time in september after the mainstem sonar project terminates, the mvtf provides species-specific cpue estimates that are used to estimate the number of salmon that would have past the mainstem sonar site, but not counted by sonar, based on the inseason relationship between the projects when both projects were operational during the season.while salmon passage data from the yukon river mainstem sonar projects remains the key component of salmon run assessment, data from the sonar project has not been reliable in some past years. River stage, debris load, and high turbidity affect the identification of sonar targets, as well as test fishing catches at the mainstem sonar site. IT appears, however, that the mvtf project, because IT is a drift test fishery and the test net can be fished between debris, may not be affected as much by river stage and debris to the extent as the other two lower yukon river assessment projects. Therefore, the mvtf project may not only provide a check as to the accuracy of the mainstem sonar counts attributed to fall chum and coho salmon but may also provide the lone reliable assessment project in the lower yukon river in some years. In the least, in those years, IT will cause managers to pause and scrutinize data from the mainstem sonar and lytf project but may also cause managers to weigh other information more heavily in their run assessment. In addition to comparisons among the lower river run assessment projects, age data will aide in the identification of trends in brood year assessment and may assist in future run forecasting. This project is a long-term project and is considered valuable by ADF & g and USFWS for management purposes. The long-term database provides the basis for comparative assessment of the current year data with prior years' relative run strength and timing. The continuation of this project depends on its value to management compared against other priorities.