Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) COSEWIC assessment and status report: chapter 14

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Existing Protection, Status and Ranks

The Atlantic Salmon is currently listed or ranked with several international and national bodies. In the United States of America, endemic populations in Maine have Endangered status under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. In April 2006, COSEWIC assessed the Atlantic Salmon Inner Bay of Fundy population as Endangered and the Lake Ontario population as Extirpated. The Atlantic Salmon Inner Bay of Fundy population is currently listed as Endangered under Canada’s Species at Risk Act, and the Lake Ontario population is currently listed as Extirpatedunder Ontario’s Endangered Species Act, 2007. Fisheries management actions also provide significant protection for Atlantic salmon. These measures are complex and vary across jurisdictions but generally include: fishery closures, limitations on gear types (both Aboriginal and recreational), seasonal restrictions, retention and release policies (e.g. quotas, catch and release, no retention of MSW fish). Salmon habitat is also protected and managed under the Fisheries Act by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans. Under provincial legislation the Atlantic Salmon is listed as Extirpated in Ontario, Sensitive in New Brunswick, Secure in Nova Scotia, Quebec, and Newfoundland and Labrador, and not assessed in Prince Edward island.