<div dir="ltr"><div><a href="http://www.trinityjournal.com/news/local/article_63ca2f24-25c3-11ee-9a85-879f79281544.html#tncms-source=login">http://www.trinityjournal.com/news/local/article_63ca2f24-25c3-11ee-9a85-879f79281544.html#tncms-source=login</a></div><div><h1 class="gmail-headline">
<span>Earlier onset, increased fish disease feared</span>
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<ul class="gmail-list-inline"><li><span class="gmail-tnt-byline">By Josh Cozine
The Trinity Journal</span></li><li class="gmail-hidden-print">Jul 19, 2023
<span class="gmail-text-muted gmail-tnt-update-recent">Updated </span>
24 min ago
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<div class="gmail-subscriber-preview"><p>Local
fishing guides are worried about a potential catastrophic uptick in
diseased fish as the Trinity River is running lower and much warmer this
year in some areas.</p></div><div class="gmail-subscriber-preview"><p>Guides
have reported temperatures being much higher this year in certain parts
of the Trinity and correlated increased reporting of gill rot, after
annual flow releases were altered at the end of this winter. Trinity
River Restoration Program has further substantiated the claim that an
increase in gill rot in fish appears to be taking place, at least in
certain parts of the river, but stated that so far estimates can only be
made based on secondhand observations and that the situation is being
monitored.</p></div><div class="gmail-subscriber-only"><p>Last year,
an increased rate of columnaris was reported in the Lower Klamath —
where the Trinity meets up before heading to the Pacific — but toward
the end of August rather than mid-July. This led to TRRP increasing
water flows to flush the river with cold water to clear out diseased
water and break up salmon groupings which tend to cluster near any cold
water and further spread the disease to one another (The Trinity
journal, “TRRP announces increased flow to combat salmon disease in
lower Klamath,” Aug. 26, 2022).</p></div>
<div id="gmail-tncms-region-article_instory_top" class="gmail-tncms-region gmail-hidden-print"></div><div class="gmail-subscriber-only"><p>Fishing
guides and lodging owners Cory Inouye and Darren Victorine with Indian
Creek Lodge and Trinity Fly Shop, respectively, spoke to The Journal on
concerns they’ve seen firsthand as well as other accounts they’ve
received, and how these higher temperatures should not normally be seen
this early in the year.</p></div><div class="gmail-subscriber-only"><p>Victorine
said after hearing the reports he drove down river as far as Hoopa, and
said while there he observed dead fish on the riverbed, alluding to
gill rot being the likely culprit, and recorded water temperatures of 74
degrees at a depth of three feet — much higher than it should be this
time of year, he said.</p></div><div class="gmail-subscriber-only"><p>“It shouldn’t be this high until September,” Victorine said.</p></div><div class="gmail-subscriber-only"><p>“Seeing
one fish, it could be any mysterious cause, but seeing two in the same
hole,” Victorine said, “when we see fish like that we kind of already
know, but I’ve never seen it this early in the season.”</p></div><div class="gmail-subscriber-only"><p>Inouye
was crucial in forming the Trinity River Watershed Alliance earlier
this year in response to the winter variable flows implemented by TRRP,
and suggested the early flows are a likely culprit in any increased
disease incidence (The Trinity Journal, “Winter flow town hall suggests
possible path to banking more water,” May 3, 2023).</p></div>
<div id="gmail-tncms-region-article_instory_middle" class="gmail-tncms-region gmail-hidden-print"></div><div class="gmail-subscriber-only"><p>Inouye
also brought the issue up on the Facebook page “Trinity River
Coalition” where many other fishing guides and river-concerned locals
shared their anecdotes, and told The Journal on Monday, July 17, that he
was making plans to speak to the county Board of Supervisors the next
day at their planned meeting on the issue. He supplied The Journal with
an early draft of what he planned to say, including the following
excerpt summing up the fears he has heard:</p></div><div class="gmail-subscriber-only"><p>“I,
along with the Trinity River Watershed Alliance, posted information
about a week ago of a pending crisis dealing with our spring chinook
salmon run. Our worry was that the reports we were given were only the
beginning of what was going to become a full-blown infection. We believe
a majority part of the population of salmon is infected and we stand to
lose a significant portion unless BOR immediately begins emergency
flows.”</p></div><div class="gmail-subscriber-only"><p>TRRP Executive
Director Mike Dixon stated in an email to The Journal that he has heard
recent estimates from Fish and Wildlife staff that a majority as high
as 70% of fish at the Junction City weir show visual signs of infection.
He immediately followed up with another email emphasizing the fact that
these were not scientific measurements, only visual approximations, but
stated that even as approximations the numbers along with other
evidence were concerning and being looked into.</p></div><div class="gmail-subscriber-only"><p>“This
is unusually and concerningly high, and coupled with some early
prespawn mortality, it definitely has the attention of all the relevant
agencies,” Dixon stated.</p></div><div class="gmail-subscriber-only"><p>“This is somewhat surprising because temperatures don’t seem exceptionally high in the upper river yet,” Dixon stated.</p></div><div class="gmail-subscriber-only"><p>He
added a possible speculation he said was shared to him by fish
biologists that thunderstorms in early June which “blew out” the North
Fork Trinity River and added heavy sediments to the section of river
which damaged the gills of fish there at the time, possibly making them
more susceptible to gill rot.</p></div><div class="gmail-subscriber-only"><p>Further information is being gathered, and updates are expected in the following weeks.</p></div>
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