Caspian terns taking big bite out of Columbia River steelhead, salmon

Photo: MDF

The largest inland colony of Caspian terns in the West is taking a big bite out of endangered fish runs in the upper Columbia River.

Though just a fraction of the size of coastal colonies, the 900-some terns living on an island near Moses Lake are single-handedly blamed for eating more than 10 percent of the wild upper Columbia steelhead juveniles and nearly 15 percent of the hatchery steelhead young as they make their way to the ocean each spring.

LINK (via: The Republic)

Bite me

Experiment to settle whether wild steelhead are really better biters than hatchery steelhead.

LINK (via: Star Tribune)

Wild Reverence Bend Screening

Join the Native Fish Society and the Wild Steelhead Coalition for a screening of Wild Reverence on May 2nd at the Volcanic Theater Pub in Bend, OR.

Wild Reverence is a movie about west coast wild steelhead. More than cool shots of catching these amazing fish, Wild Reverence is an examination of the big picture. It delves into steelhead population trends, habitat quality, the impact of dams, and interaction with hatchery fish. 

Wild Reverence shares the stories of steelhead, rivers, and people. It illustrates where things are working, where they are broken, and how we can turn the decline around and save wild fish for future generations.

Doors at 6pm for a Texas-style BBQ dinner and raffle with items donated by Fly & Field Outfitters. Movie at 7pm followed by a discussion with filmmaker Shane Anderson.  

Tickets are $13 at Fly & Field or $15 at the door.

Broken Pumps Lead to 175 Endangered Steelhead Deaths

In the past year, 175 steelhead trout — a federally endangered species — died in Hilton Creek, a tributary of the Santa Ynez River, when pumps operated by the federal Bureau of Reclamation that feed water into the creek as part of a steelhead restoration effort failed to function properly and left the fish stranded in the mud.

LINK (via: The Santa Barbara Independent)

Olympic Peninsula Wild Steelhead - Why aren't they listed too?

Photo: Tim Pask

Bob Triggs won't be guiding anyone for winter run steelhead on the Olympic Peninsula any more. The rest of the world needs to wake up before it's too late.

I stand with Bob, we'll see you in BC next fall.

LINK

The wheels of wild steelhead management turn very slowly.....

Angling regulation proposals for the East Fork of the Lewis River will be discussed when the Steelhead Management Work Group meets at 1 p.m. Feb. 21 at the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, 2108 Grand Blvd.

So we're now back to holding working group meetings on this proposal?

What happened with the Green and the Toutle?

It's all part of the plan!

Setting up a network of gene banks is one of a number of strategies endorsed by the department's Statewide Steelhead Management Plan, adopted in 2008.

Plan?

A plan is typically any diagram or list of steps with timing and resources, used to achieve an objective.  It is commonly understood as a temporal set of intended actions through which one expects to achieve a goal.

Six years later and we're still waiting for somebody to implement the dam "plan."