Salmonid Distribution and Ocean Habitat in the California Current, 1998-2016

NOAA's Southwest Fisheries Science Center conducted annual surface trawl surveys from 1998 to 2016 in coastal waters of northern California and southern Oregon. The data includes juvenile and subadult salmonids, co-occurring pelagic fish and invertebrates, and matched biological and physical oceanographic variables. Samples such as scales, DNA, otoliths, and stomach contents were retained for analysis, while seabird counts, plankton samples, and CTD profiles were also recorded.

Use Cases

• Modeling salmon population trends based on annual survey data from 1998-2016
• Analyzing species co-occurrence relationships based on coastal pelagic fish and invertebrate data
• Investigating ocean habitat drivers for salmon based on measured temperature, salinity, and chlorophyll variables
• Studying diet and life history of juvenile salmon based on retained stomach contents, scales, and otoliths

Strengths

• 19-year time series from 1998 to 2016
• Multiple data layers including biological samples, oceanographic profiles, and seabird counts
• Focus includes several ESA-listed populations of Chinook and coho salmon and steelhead

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment
• Data is provided in PDF format, which may complicate direct analysis

Provenance

Source

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce

Collection Method

Annual surface trawl surveys conducted by the Fisheries Ecology Division of NOAA's SWFSC

Time Range

1998-2016

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-14 23:06:29.927883; freshness should be verified

Geography

Coastal waters of northern California and southern Oregon