Photos: Kuskokwim test fishery near Aniak

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A new test fishery opens Monday, June 1, 2015, on the Kuskokwim River in state waters just past the village of Aniak. One king is caught Monday morning. The state Department of Fish and Game has budgeted $40,000 for a crew to drift with a gillnet twice a day. The information will tell managers which species of salmon are heading into the upper river.

BETHEL -- Early Monday morning, a crew of three caught a Kuskokwim River king salmon just past Aniak as part of a new test fishery to help managers assess the composition of the salmon runs that feed residents up and down the river.

The state Department of Fish and Game, which has budgeted $40,000 for the project, wanted more information on when -- and if -- various species of salmon reach upriver waters, a state management biologist said.

A fishing crew with new gillnets in a leased boat will drift twice a day, starting at 9 a.m. and again at 5 p.m., making three passes to cover the width of the river in the selected fishing area, said Dan Gillikin, environmental director for the Native Village of Napaimute, which the state has contracted with for the work.

Read more: New Kuskokwim test fishery near Aniak started Monday