Steelhead study to determine survival
Photo by Ron Roberts A new study by the University of Idaho will follow tagged steelhead from Lower Granite Dam to their tributaries of the Clearwater, Salmon and Steelhead rivers to measure survival.
Tagged steelhead will be finning their way into Idaho and anglers are being asked to report any tagged fish they catch.
The steelhead survival study is being conducted by the University of Idaho and Idaho Fish and Game and will include steelhead that migrate over the Lower Granite Dam bound for the Snake, Salmon and Clearwater rivers, but also include Snake River tributaries in Washington and Oregon, according to Idaho Fish and Game.
The study is meant to give fisheries managers a better understanding of the influence of catch-and-release angling on wild steelhead populations. It will focus on how many steelhead are caught, survival rates after being released, and should provide more detailed migration information according to Fish and Game.
“The study is dependent on anglers reporting where and when they catch tagged fish that are caught-and-released,” graduate student William Lubenau of the University of Idaho said.
In Idaho, anglers must release any wild steelhead with an adipose fin, but they can keep hatchery fish that don’t have adipose fins.
The tags will be made of orange plastic tubing near the dorsal fin and will include a number and information about how to report the tag to Fish and Game. Most tagged fish will be wild fish.
The internal tag will identify tagged fish that enter spawning tributaries, which will allow researchers to estimate how many caught-and-released wild steelhead survive to spawn.
“(It) will provide valuable information to better manage steelhead,” Lubenau said.