Atlantic Salmon Presence Likelihood in Canadian Coastal Planning Areas

Fisheries and Oceans Canada provides data estimating the likelihood of Atlantic salmon presence within Area Response Plan regions. The dataset integrates surface trawl survey data from 2001 and 2003 with information from subsequent tagging studies. It includes seasonal and spatial attributes for use in environmental planning.

Use Cases

• Model seasonal presence likelihood using the temporal attributes for environmental risk assessment.
• Analyze spatial distribution patterns of Atlantic salmon within the Area Response Plan regions.
• Integrate the presence likelihood estimates with other geospatial data for coastal zone management.
• Use the tagging study information to validate or refine habitat suitability models.

Strengths

• Data is provided by the authoritative Coastal Ecosystems Science Division of Fisheries and Oceans Canada.
• Integrates multiple data sources, including direct trawl surveys from 2001 and 2003 and subsequent tagging studies.
• Explicitly includes both spatial and temporal attributes for analysis, as noted in the description.

Limitations

• The core survey data is from 2001 and 2003, which may not reflect current population distributions.
• The exact number of data rows and columns is unknown, limiting assessment of statistical power.
• Likelihood estimates are derived from models combining survey and tagging data, introducing potential estimation error.

Provenance

Source

Coastal Ecosystems Science Division, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, St. Andrews, N.B.

Collection Method

Surface trawl surveys conducted in 2001 and 2003, combined with data from subsequent tagging studies to estimate likelihood of presence.

Time Range

Survey data from 2001 and 2003; dataset published in June 2018.

Freshness

Metadata was last updated in March 2026, but the underlying survey data is from 2001 and 2003.

Geography

Area Response Plan pilot areas in Canadian coastal waters, specific to Atlantic salmon.