Atlantic Salmon Smolt Research on the Miramichi River 2026

Adult Atlantic salmon returns to the Miramichi River reached a record low in 2019 and have shown little recovery, with the Northwest Miramichi experiencing the poorest returns for decades. This project will assess whether smolt survival during freshwater and estuary migration is a key limiting factor compared to ocean mortality. The Miramichi Salmon Association will use rotary screw traps to collect, tag, and estimate smolt outmigration, while the Atlantic Salmon Federation will conduct acoustic tracking to measure smolt survival through the estuary. The project is a collaborative research effort involving the MSA, Anqotum (North Shore Mi’kmaq Tribal Council AAROM body), and ASF, with additional smolts shared with permitted research partners.