Soquel Creek is a small stream flowing into Monterey Bay about 70 miles south of San Francisco and is home to a population of winter steelhead. A group of scientists published a paper in 2009 that looked into seasonal patterns of growth, survival and movement of age-0 and age-1+ juvenile steelhead within this small California watershed. Age-0 fish are …
Science Friday: Predictions for Columbia/Snake River summer steelhead and a new study on ocean distribution
Winter steelhead season is winding down, if not over in some rivers. Time to regroup and prepare for summer runs! This Friday we have a science two-pack for you. First, a bit of cautious optimism. More steelhead are predicted to return to the Columbia River basin this year than in the past two years. Last year the upriver …
Science Friday: Can innovative methods for a wild broodstock hatchery rebuild a depleted wild population
This week we send you off with a review of a recent before-and-after study on hatchery steelhead published by Barry Berejikian and Donald Van Doornick (find the study here). The goal of this long-term study, conducted in a handful of rivers in Hood Canal, Washington, was to determine if a well-designed hatchery program could help rebuild populations of steelhead that …
The Maury Povich Steelhead Show: You are all the father
Took a short break from our Science Friday posts to do some actual science (on Olympic Peninsula winter steelhead) and to weigh in on some important policy issues. But now, like anglers looking for fresh winter chrome: we’re b-a-a-a-c-k. As you know, in the Science Friday forum we discuss a wide range of topics important to the management and …
Can a Wild Coho Salmon Population Recover Following Closure of a Hatchery Program
Today’s post is the conclusion of our two part guest series on the recovery of Coho in Oregon’s Salmon River. (Click here for last weeks post) Lately we have shared several studies on Pink and Coho salmon, which provide important lessons for salmonid recovery efforts across a range of species and watersheds. Perhaps the most important lesson is that decisions …
Science Friday: Restoring the River Salmon: The Coho Return
Today we are re-publishing an excellent article by Dan Bottom on the remarkable against all odds recovery of Salmon River Coho. This article was originally written for and published by the Reflections program at the Sitka Center for Art and Ecology near Otis on Oregon’s Salmon River. This article was submitted by Dan Bottom, a current Howard L. McKee …
Science Friday: The latest from the longest running steelhead monitoring project in British Columbia
Thank goodness it’s Friday. Fall is in the air and it’s time to get on the river! But first, let’s give our steelhead IQs another booster shot with a new Science Friday post. This week we have a guest writer and scientist, Colin Bailey, a PhD student studying fisheries science at Simon Fraser University under Jonathan Moore (Moore …
Not too hot, not too cold, the ocean must be just right
Two weeks ago we were on the Dean. This week we go even further north, to Auke Bay near Juneau, Alaska, for our next Science Friday post. The greater Juneau are is home to several rivers that host wild steelhead runs. Auke Creek is perhaps the most important of these feeder streams, as scientists at the Auke Bay Marine …
Science Friday: Some come early, some come late: Genetics of Dean River steelhead
There are a handful of rivers that every steelheader wants to fish. Among these is the Dean River in British Columbia, perhaps the most revered wild steelhead river on the planet. Not only is this river remote and beautiful, it is also home to some of the hardest fighting steelhead anywhere. The Dean’s fame as a wild steelhead fishery …
Science Friday: Sand bars, lagoons and moving steelhead
Back to back Science Friday posts focusing on California and the unique challenges that steelhead face in the state. This week we pivot from juvenile steelhead coping with ponded pools to a look at juveniles that enter and live seasonally in lagoons at the mouths of creeks and rivers — a phenomenon fairly common in smaller coastal watersheds in California …