Buskin River Marine Zone Project
Project Information and Results
2018
In August 2017, Sun’aq Tribe of Kodiak was awarded funding by USFWS Tribal Wildlife Grant (TWG) Program. The two-year project, titled “Distribution, Movement and Diet of Invasive Crayfish Populations in Buskin River Watershed on Kodiak Island, Alaska” focuses on characterizing the distribution (snorkel surveys), movement (radio tagging) and diet (stable isotope analyses) of the Signal Crayfish (Pacifastacus leniusculus) population within Buskin Watershed.
1,299 Signal Crayfish were captured and removed from the Buskin Watershed during the 2018 field season. Signal Crayfish were captured in the northeast, southeast, and southwest portions of Buskin Lake (Figure 1).
For additional project data, please see the 2018 Research Report.
2016-2017
In 2016, STK received funding from the Bureau of Indian Affairs Invasive Species Program to survey for Signal Crayfish within the Buskin Watershed utilizing kick seining and electrofishing methods. During the 2016 and 2017 field seasons, 378 and 708 Signal Crayfish were captured and removed from the watershed, respectively. Total length and carapace length measurements were taken for each specimen, along with sex, species and GPS coordinates. This project verified that an invasive population is thriving within Buskin Watershed, and that electrofishing and snorkeling proved to be the most effective capture methods.
For additional project data, please see the Final Project Report.
How Can You Help?
The general public has been trapping, snorkeling, and scuba diving for Signal Crayfish in Buskin Watershed for sport purposes.
You can help by:
Reporting any information on Signal Crayfish to Kelly Krueger at 486-4449.
Capturing Signal Crayfish in Buskin Lake – snorkeling and scuba diving work best.
Writing down harvest numbers on the bulletin board at the Buskin sockeye weir.
