Results of pacific salmon fishery in Sakhalin-Kuril Region in 2025

Results of pacific salmon fishery in Sakhalin-Kuril Region in 2025 are summarized. The fishing sea- son of 2025 was one of the worst for the Sakhalin Region for a long time. With the forecasted volume of 62194 t, the total actual catch of pacific salmon was no more than 21244 t (34.2 % of the forecast), including 5377 t of pink salmon On- corhynchus gorbuscha, 14423 t of chum salmon O. keta, 1118 t of sockeye salmon O. nerka, 311 t of coho salmon O. kisutch, and 15 t of masu salmon O. masou. It was the third amount among the Far Eastern regions, after Kamchatka (258916 t) and Khabarovsk Region (32926 t). According to fisheries statistics, the landing in commercial aquaculture reached 12751 t, including 759 t of pink salmon and 11992 t of chum salmon. The most significant decline was observed in key fishing areas, as the East Sakhalin fishing subzone (16.8 % of the forecast) and the South Kuril fishing subzone (20.8 % of the forecast). The most erroneous was the catch forecast for pink salmon (25900 t, whereas the actual catch was in 5 times lower). The run abundance for pink salmon was estimated in 12.1·106 ind., among them 9.4·106 ind. escaped to the rivers (77.7 % of the run, or about a half of the optimum number), and the rest of 2.7·106 were caught. The spawning grounds in southwestern Sakhalin and the southern Kuril Islands were filled by the spawners with the lowest levels for all years of observation (36.6·103 and 75.1·103 ind., respectively). The errors were caused by extremely unfa- vorable environmental conditions during the spawning migration. The catch of chum salmon (14423 t) was closer to the forecast (34400 t), but this accuracy in 41.9 % cannot be considered as appropriate, too. Almost total loss of hatchery- reared chum salmon of all age groups was observed in the southern Kuril Islands where the catch of 10700 t was predicted and only 420 t (3.9 %) was caught. Synchronous decline in chum salmon abundance is noted for all sites in the southern part of their range (Iturup, Kunashir, Hokkaido), in opposite to relatively stable situation in the northern regions (Kamchatka, East Sakhalin and the Okhotsk Sea coasts of Khabarovsk and Magadan Regions). The problems of operational regulation of chum salmon fishery in southeastern Sakhalin Island are analyzed, and solutions are proposed, partially within the framework of the «Strategy for the Pacific Salmon Fishery in Sakhalin Region in 2026».