Hatcheries, Interactions, and Ecosystems

Todd Pearsons
Fisheries Scientist
Grant County Public Utilities District

26 May 2009

Download the slide presentation accompanying this talk

Download an audio recording of the talk

About the speaker

Todd Pearsons received his B.A. degree in Aquatic Biology from the University of California at Santa Barbara and his M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Fisheries Science from Oregon State University.  Todd is currently the lead hatchery scientist for the Grant County Public Utility District’s hatchery mitigation programs which span the gamut from captive broodstock programs for critically endangered species and harvest augmentation of one of the healthiest Chinook salmon stocks in the U.S.  He was formerly the director of the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife’s Hatchery/Wild Interactions Unit and serves as a Research Associate at Central Washington University.  Todd has spent over 25 years investigating, speaking, and writing about the interrelationships of biota in aquatic ecosystems.  His research focuses on interactions among hatchery, exotic, and wild fish and how knowledge about interactions can be used to assess and contain risks. He continues to work on research topics and development of practical tools that can be used to facilitate desirable ecological interactions and minimize undesirable ones.

Reference Articles:

A Practical Approach for Containing Ecological Risks Associated with Fish Stocking Programs Kenneth D. Ham and Todd N. Pearsons (2001)

Misconception, Reality, and Uncertainty about Ecological Interactions and Risks between Hatchery and Wild Salmonids Todd N. Pearsons, Fisheries, 33:6, 278-290, June 2008

Impacts of Early Stages of Salmon Supplementation and Reintroduction Programs on Three Trout Species Todd N. Pearsons and Gabriel M. Temple, North American Journal of Fisheries Management 27:1–20, 2007

The Effects of Hatchery Domestication on Competitive Dominance of Juvenile Spring Chinook Salmon Todd N. Pearsons, Anthony L. Fritts, and Jennifer L. Scott, Can. J. Fish. Aquat. Sci. 64: 803-812 (2007)

Can non-native smallmouth bass, Micropterus dolomieu, be swamped by hatchery fish releases to increase juvenile Chinook salmon, Oncorhynchus tshawytscha, survival? Anthony L. Fritts and Todd N. Pearsons, Environ Biol Fish, Accepted: 26 May 2008