Analysis of the 1965 smolt run in the Northwest Miramichi River, New Brunswick

During the 1965 smolt run in the Northwest Miramichi River in New Brunswick, 1000 smolts were collected and examined for length, weight, age, plus growth, sex, and condition factor. Comparisons between the daily water level, the water temperature, and the number of smolts in the daily run were also made. The average length of the smolts in the sample was 14.7 centimetres, and the average weight was 21.9 grams. Larger fish dominated the early and late parts of the run. Three-year smolts formed 87.8% of the sample; 2-year smolts formed 11.1%; and 4-year smolts formed 1.1%. 'The number of 2-year smolts increased slightly as the season advanced, while the number of 3-year smolts decreased slightly as the season advanced. The size of the smolts increased with age. The number of smolts showing plus growth increased as the season progressed. Females dominated the run, decreasing slightly toward the latter part of the season. More males were noted in older age groups. Of the 1000 smolts collected, 664 were female and 336 were male. The peak of the smolt run occurred as the daily water level was dropping and the daily water temperature was rising. The average condition factor of all the smolts was 0.7.