[env-trinity] American River Steelhead Numbers Rebound From Last Year

[Dan Bacher]

  http://www.dailykos.com/stories/2015/12/22/1462882/-American-River-Steelhead-Numbers-Rebound-From-Last-Season
Dan Bacher with a beautiful winter-run steelhead caught on the  
American River. Photo by Rodney Fagundes.

American River Steelhead Numbers Rebound From Last Year

by Dan Bacher

Rancho Cordova) The number of steelhead showing now at Nimbus Fish  
Hatchery is greatly improved from last season, in spite of continuing  
low releases of 500 cfs from Nimbus Dam into the lower American River.

This year is much different from last season, when a total of only 154  
steelhead were trapped by hatchery staff from December through mid- 
March.

In contrast, the hatchery has trapped over 148 steelhead as of  
December 22. Last season only 10 steelhead had been trapped by  
December 29.

“There are lots of steelhead in the hatchery, said Gary Novak, Nimbus  
Fish Hatchery manager. “I’m floored.”

The hatchery has spawned a total of 27 pairs to date compared with  
only 31 pairs all of  last season.

“The males are above average size and the females are also large,” he  
said, leading to speculation that some of the steelhead may have  
stayed out in the ocean for an extra year and have come up the river  
as 4-year-olds.

We won’t know for sure until scale samples of the steelhead are  
analyzed by biologists. Most steelhead return to spawn as three-year- 
olds on the American River.

The number of eggs taken from the fish to date is 198,278. That’s more  
than the total for the entire season last year, 192,278 eggs.

“We averaged about 6,000 eggs per female last season,” he said. “This  
season we’re seeing over 7,000 eggs per fish.”

The numbers of fall-run Chinook salmon, including jacks and jills (two- 
year—old fish), showing at the hatchery are now also above those  
trapped last year. The facility has trapped 9,716 salmon, including  
7,326 adults and 2390 jacks and jills,  this season.

Last year hatchery staff counted a total of 8,343 salmon, including  
7,048 adults and 1,295 jacks and jills.

The hatchery has taken 8 million eyed salmon eggs to date. “Overall,  
the numbers of salmon are typical of those we’ve seen here in recent  
years,” said Novak.

“The water at the hatchery was warm in the beginning, but the cold  
snap we got cooled the water down and brought up fresh fish from the  
Sacramento,” he explained.

He noted that they have already sent 2 million eggs to the Mokelumne  
River Fish Hatchery, in addition to the eggs they have on hand at  
Nimbus, as insurance against any unforeseen disaster. 
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