Steelhead 101: Escapement

In Science Friday by steelheaders

One thing is certain — science is loaded with jargon. You almost need a PhD just to understand some of the technical language. While technical language is valuable to those that study and manage steelhead, it can also detract from sharing and explaining key messages – particularly in situations where various terms are bandied about without definition. For example, I …

6 Reasons sonar is so cool for steelhead

In Oregon, Science Friday, Washington by steelheaders

If you’re trying to manage steelhead, one of the more difficult tasks you will have is getting an accurate picture of what populations are doing over a given time.   Unlike many of their brethren, steelhead don’t put all their “eggs in one basket.” Runs are timed throughout the year, often during times of high water and poor visibility. This …

Angler Science opportunities in Washington

In Science Friday, Washington by Nick Chambers

It is that time of year again where we all get the opportunity to become citizen scientists on the weekend (basically, we get to have fun playing in streams).   I am happy to inform you all that – like last year – TU and Wild Steelheaders United will be conducting steelhead redd surveys in Washington’s Hoh River and sharing …

Science Friday: Tillamook Bay Steelhead

In Oregon, Science Friday by Nick Chambers

Do you ever wonder what we might be missing nowadays in terms of steelhead life histories? Although we can’t go back in time to answer this question, we can look at historic data — in this case from Oregon’s Tillamook Bay. By the 1940’s Oregon’s Tillamook Bay was a patchwork of homesteads and farms, appearing more like the present day …

Juvenile steelhead doing what it takes to become a smolt: You grow in summer, I’ll grow in winter

In Oregon, Science Friday, Steelhead Files, Washington by Nick Chambers

Another Friday, another blog post on the science of steelhead. We love this day of the week! Our topic this week is the growth of juvenile steelhead.  Did you know that the growth rate of steelhead can vary depending on the season of the year?  This variation in growth rate can be considerable. There are a number of reasons that …

Asotin Creek – WDFW update

In Idaho, Science Friday, Steelhead Files, Washington by steelheaders

By Ethan Crawford, Fisheries Biologist – WDFW Asotin Creek Project An earlier blog post described the great resiliency of wild steelhead in Asotin Creek and noted that this resiliency is in part due to a combination of a variety factors: improved habitat quality, increased spill at hydroelectric facilities, good ocean conditions, and a great reduction in hatchery origin steelhead spawners, …

Life history diversity: dispersing risk

In California, Science Friday, Steelhead Files by steelheaders

By Brian Hodge Just as investors diversify their portfolio of assets to minimize financial loss, fisheries managers may diversify their portfolio of conservation strategies to minimize species loss. Another fishy analog for the “portfolio effect” comes from the steelhead—it reduces risk of extinction by displaying a diverse array of life histories, or pathways from hatch to spawn. My colleagues and …