Concentrations of environmental DNA (eDNA) during sockeye salmon spawning in 2016, Hansen Creek, Alaska, USA

This dataset contains environmental DNA (eDNA) concentrations and spawning adult abundances for sockeye salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka) in Hansen Creek, a small tributary in the Wood River watershed, southeast Alaska, USA. We took temporally- and spatially-replicated eDNA samples during the spawning period (mid-July through August), along with fish counts (live, naturally dead, and killed), dissolved oxygen (DO), discharge, and temperature data at each time of sampling. Samples were collected at each site before adults entered the stream, and then continued to be collected daily or every other day for the next three weeks. These data were collected in order to assess spatial and temporal variation in sockeye salmon eDNA concentration, within the context of the dynamic biological event of a salmon spawning season. eDNA samples were collected alongside counts of live fish, naturally dead fish (i.e. spawned out), and killed fish (i.e. killed by predation) throughout the spawning season. Temperature, discharge, and dissolved oxygen (DO) data were also collected at times of sampling. These data were used to determine the spatial resolution of eDNA in flowing water, the additivity of eDNA from independent sources, and the concentration of eDNA in relation to fish abundance and environmental factors.