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2025 Columbia/Snake River Pikeminnow Sport Reward Fishery Opens, Last Year’s Top Angler Earned $164,260

The 2025 Northern Pikeminnow Sport-Reward Fishery opened May 1, offering anglers the chance to earn cash while helping protect vulnerable salmon and steelhead in the Columbia and Snake rivers. The fishery will be open daily through Sept. 30 at most locations.

Funded by the Bonneville Power Administration, the sport-reward program pays recreational anglers to catch predatory northern pikeminnow; a native fish that consumes millions of juvenile salmon and steelhead in the Columbia River basin each year.

“The sport-reward fishery plays a key role in salmon and steelhead recovery efforts,” said Eric Winther, pikeminnow program manager with the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW). “Since 1991, anglers have logged more than a million trips and removed nearly six million northern pikeminnow from the Columbia and Snake rivers — reducing predation on young salmon by up to 40% compared to pre-program levels.”

The goal of the program is not to eradicate native northern pikeminnow, but to remove 10-20% of the larger, predator-sized northern pikeminnow each year. Removing these fish helps shift the population toward smaller individuals, which consume fewer salmon and steelhead smolts.

Anglers are paid for each qualifying northern pikeminnow they catch, with payouts increasing as they catch more fish. Anglers will earn $6 for the first 25 fish, $8 for fish 26 to 200, and $10 for every fish over 200. Anglers can also catch tagged northern pikeminnow worth up to $500 each.

“Tagged fish aren’t just a bonus for anglers — they’re a critical tool for tracking the program’s success,” said Winther. “Each tagged fish returned helps us better understand northern pikeminnow harvest and exploitation rates, movement patterns, and population dynamics.”

To qualify for a cash reward, northern pikeminnow must be at least nine inches long, and caught within the program boundaries, which spans the Columbia River from its mouth upstream to Priest Rapids Dam, and the Snake River from its mouth upstream to Hells Canyon Dam.

Anglers must register each day they plan to fish, either at one of the 21 registration stations or using the Pikeminnow Registration mobile application, available on Apple and Android devices. Fish must be turned in fresh on the date indicated on their registration at the station where the angler registered. Only fish personally caught by the registered angler are eligible for reward payment. A valid fishing license is required, and all state fishing regulations must be followed.

While most registration stations will open May 1, three locations — The Dalles Boat Basin, Columbia Point Park, and Umatilla Boat Ramp — opened early in 2025 to align with favorable water conditions that make fishing at each location more productive earlier in the season.

In 2024, anglers turned in 176,420 qualifying northern pikeminnow, with each angler averaging 14.5 fish per day. The top 20 anglers averaged 4,514 fish and $45,405 in cash rewards over the five-month season. The program’s top angler earned $164,260 by catching 16,150 fish — a new program record, surpassing the previous highs of $119,341 and 14,109 fish set in 2016.

The sport-reward fishery is part of a larger BPA-funded effort approved by the Northwest Power and Conservation Council to help mitigate the impacts of Columbia River dams on salmon and steelhead. The Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission oversees the program and partners with Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife and WDFW, which jointly manage registration, check stations, fish tagging, and research used to track program effectiveness.

For more information about the sport-reward fishery including regulations, locations and maps, registration, and catch data, refer to pikeminnow.org or call the hotline at 800-858-9015.

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For First Time WDFW Using ‘Management Strategy Evaluation’ To Assess Harvest Strategies For Lower Columbia River Tributary Fisheries

Above Photo by WDFW of an adult coho during spawn.

The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife will hold a virtual public meeting on April 1, from 6–8 p.m., to discuss potential harvest management strategies for Lower Columbia River tributary fisheries.

Balancing conservation with fishing opportunities is a complex challenge that exists across all of Washington’s waters. Achieving this balance is particularly critical in the Lower Columbia River and its tributaries, where fish populations, or stocks, listed as threatened under the U.S. Endangered Species Act are present.

To better address this challenge, WDFW fishery managers and scientists are using a Management Strategy Evaluation (MSE) process for the first time. The MSE process uses advanced mathematical models to evaluate various fisheries management strategies and their impacts on fish populations. The agency says it will provide WDFW decision-makers with more accurate, science-based, and forward-thinking information than before.

WDFW is currently using the MSE process to assess the short- and long-term effects of different harvest management strategies on LCR tributary fish populations. The process includes five key steps:

  1. Data collection: Fishery managers and scientists gather critical information on specific fish populations, including population size, reproduction rates, age structure, harvest statistics, and the number of hatchery fish in a river.
  2. Population modeling: Fishery managers and scientists use this information to build an Integrated Population Model (IPM). The IPM is a statistical tool that combines multiple types of data to offer a comprehensive view of fish population characteristics, including growth, survival, and environmental impacts.
  3. Strategy development: Using insights from the IPM, fishery managers and scientists develop and test rules that control how many fish can be harvested or impacted. These rules, known as harvest control rules (HCRs), are designed to keep fish populations healthy by establishing limits on fishing activities. They might include:

— Escapement goals: The number of fish that reach their spawning grounds.

— Total impact rates: The percentage of fish that are caught or die due to fishing.

— Abundance-based management: Adjusting fishing limits based on how many fish are in the population.

–Mathematical models simulate these rules to predict outcomes, helping fishery managers evaluate the effectiveness of each HCR or strategy.

  1. Public input: After developing strategies, fishery managers share the options and their potential outcomes with the public. Then, WDFW collects public input and considers stakeholders’ views and concerns when deciding on management strategies.
  2. Decision-making: Fishery managers will then compare each option’s strengths and weaknesses and choose a harvest management strategy that balances conservation with fishing opportunities.

By using this approach, fishery managers say they can customize the MSE process to match the unique traits of salmon and steelhead populations in LCR tributaries.

WDFW will use the MSE process to consider updates to the LCR Tributary Fisheries Management and Evaluation Plan, published in 2003. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration requires this plan to permit fishery impacts, or set fishing seasons, for ESA listed salmon and steelhead in LCR tributaries.

The FMEP establishes harvest control rules, assesses conservation risks, and details how fisheries and fish populations are regulated, monitored, and enforced. It also includes performance measures to track progress toward management objectives.

Fishery managers are currently using the MSE process to update the LCR Tributary FMEP for submission to NOAA, with plans to apply this approach to other areas of the state, including Grays Harbor, Willapa Bay, and the upper Columbia River, in the future.

The MSE process provides the scientific basis for evaluating different harvest management strategies, but choosing a strategy requires input from the public and stakeholders. Their perspectives assist fishery managers in finding a balance between competing priorities and performance goals.

WDFW is offering multiple opportunities for public engagement. WDFW will hold a virtual public meeting on April 1, from 6–8 p.m., to present the MSE results and discuss potential harvest management strategies for LCR tributary fisheries. https://wdfw.wa.gov/events/public-meeting-lower-columbia-river-tributary-fisheries-20250401

The meeting will be recorded and later available on WDFW’s YouTube channel.

After the April 1 meeting, WDFW will release a survey that seeks to understand how individuals feel about balancing increased fishing opportunities with conservation goals, as well as how these preferences vary across different communities.

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Egg-To-Fry Survival Of Chinook Salmon Studied In Several Columbia Basin Rivers, Provides Predictive Models For Researchers

A recent study brings to light the dangers of a little-known life stage in which spring Chinook salmon in the Columbia River basin generally incur high mortality – incubation in the gravel.

The study of spawning areas in several rivers that flow out of the east side of the Cascade Mountains quantifies impacts of substrate scour, scour depth and fine sediment accumulation on embryo survival, which one study author says can be difficult to effectively measure.

The study also provides predictive models that other researchers and fisheries managers can use to make their own estimates of Chinook salmon egg-to-fry survival, regardless of location, as the information is transferrable to other Columbia basin streams and spawning grounds.

“This information can be used to estimate the magnitude of loss relative to subsequent life-stages, to identify factors critical to incubation survival within a watershed, and to provide context for survival estimates relative to other upper and middle Columbia systems,” said Christopher Johnson, one of the study authors from the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife and the School of Aquatic and Fisheries Sciences at the University of Washington, Seattle. “It is our hope that the findings can be used to not only determine if incubation survival is a concern, but also to inform and target habitat actions aimed at reducing embryo mortality.”

He said that the study highlights the variability in survival in time and space (over years, river basins and individual spawning sites), including areas very close to each other.

“Noteworthy is the magnitude of within-site variability in survival attributable to scour and/or fine sediment infiltration observed among redds in near proximity to one another,” Johnson said. “This finding emphasizes the importance of appropriate spatial scale when assessing incubation survival, and further highlights the remarkable plasticity of anadromous salmonids in selecting suitable areas for spawning.”

The environmental factors that negatively impact survival are high fines, flow-related scour, dewatering, high temperature and redd superimposition, the study says. As the basin warms, the authors say they would expect an increase in the influence of each of these variables, likely lowering survival of “these already stressed and depleted populations.”

“Many Columbia River salmonid populations are in danger of extinction, and we feel it important to note that documented trends of global scale warming may sizably affect the quality and availability of incubation habitats,” Johnson said. “Although many of the implications of such changes are outside the control of salmon managers, relationships such as those provided in this study will be essential to the identification of areas most at-risk for decreasing productivity, such that implemented habitat actions might moderate such effects.”

The study, “Factors affecting the survival of Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) embryos in upper and middle Columbia River watersheds,” was published Feb. 25 in the Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences (https://doi.org/10.1139/cjfas-2024-0250).

Authors are Johnson; Philip Roni, Cramer Fish Sciences in Issaquah, WA; Trenton De Boer, Yakama Nation Fisheries, Toppenish, WA; Andrew R. Murdoch, WDFW; and Thomas P. Quinn, U of W, School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences, Seattle.

The researchers measured egg-to-fry survival in the Methow, Entiat, Wenatchee and Yakima river basins, all located on the east slope of the Cascades in Washington. The study area covered some 380 river kilometers (236 miles) of Chinook spawning habitat.

It was a long-term study. The researchers conducted four basin-scale studies of Chinook salmon egg-to-fry survival between 2009 and 2021 in the Columbia River tributaries; each study populations being currently supplemented or have a recent history of supplementation, and most listed under the federal Endangered Species Act, the study says.

“We detected a 16.8% decrease in the odds of survival for every 1-cm increase in substrate scour, a 1.0% decrease in the survival odds with each one-unit change in the percentage of accumulated fines, distinct differences in survival within and among rivers (from 30.5% to 82.5%), and subtle effects of parentage in the presence of environmental factors,” the study says. “The causal and predictive relationships provided here will inform conservation, restoration, and further research.”

Chinook salmon, due mostly to their size, have some advantages, according to the study. As the largest of Pacific salmon species, they can select spawning habitats across a wide range of stream depths and flows. And their larger size allows them to build deeper redds in coarser gravels, deeper water and in higher velocity flows, likely resulting in a lower probability of mortality due to scour. Still, egg-to-fry survival differed substantially among the rivers and study sites.

“Observed survival variability was largely explained by the magnitude of scour and fine sediment infiltration over the period of incubation, environmental metrics that varied at multiple scales across our study,” the study says.

How can salmon managers affect change? Johnson said the key is first to understand the system by “leveraging available data and perhaps investing in relevant data where it does not currently exist.”

Fisheries managers already document the location of Chinook redds every year, he said. Small studies that either model or collect data about the frequency and size of substrate scour and fine sediment accumulation are sufficient to make comparisons to other Columbia River systems.

“Managers may find that embryo survival is not a large concern at which point they can focus on other life-stage specific sources of mortality,” Johnson said. “Alternatively, if there are indications that incubation survival is a concern, the models provided can help managers focus recovery efforts locally to minimize impacts.”

Managers could modify policy and practices in areas of a watershed where the probability of egg-to-fry mortality is high, or take restoration actions such as riparian and floodplain restoration that could moderate substrate scour and the mobility of fine sediment.

Johnson said that the study authors also relied on “dedicated and enthusiastic people from a variety of state, federal, tribal, and non-governmental organizations, and from the community at-large. We are endlessly grateful to have had their support.”

For background, see:

— CBB, May 6, 2016, Field Based Salmon Egg-To-Fry Study In Upper Yakima System Shows Good Survival, Analyzes Factors, https://columbiabasinbulletin.org/field-based-salmon-egg-to-fry-study-in-upper-yakima-system-shows-good-survival-analyzes-factors/

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Washington Intercepts Tugboat At Watercraft Inspection Station Carrying 21 Gallons Of Invasive Mussels, Largest Volume From One Boat In 7 Years

Above photo: 21 gallon-sized plastic bags full of invasive mussels removed from one of the two tugboats intercepted. Photo by WDFW.

Two tugboats infested with quagga and zebra mussels were intercepted last month at the Spokane watercraft inspection station. While one tugboat had only a few mussels attached, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife removed 21 gallons of invasive mussels from the other — the largest volume of invasive mussels removed from a single vessel entering Washington in the last 7 years.

Had the Spokane check station not been open, the mussel-fouled watercraft could have ended up in Washington’s waters. Invasive species like quagga and zebra mussels threaten Washington’s economy, environment, human health, critical infrastructure, and recreation.

“Invasive mussel introduction and establishment is an imminent threat to our state,” said Justin Bush, WDFW’s aquatic invasive species division manager. If established, mitigation and management costs to vital infrastructure, like drinking water and hydropower, are estimated to cost hundreds of millions annually.

“A single mussel can produce over 1 million eggs per year,” he said adding, “in the last 5 years, we’ve intercepted 127 invasive mussel infested boats. If just one made it to our waters, we would be addressing the consequences of invasive species introduction today.”

The tugboats were previously anchored in Lake Michigan where quagga and zebra mussels were first detected in the 1980s. Introduced through ship ballast water, the mussels have now spread to more than 30 states. While not currently established in Washington, recent quagga mussel detections in Idaho in 2024 demonstrate how close the threat is to Washington’s waters.

WDFW says it’s no accident that invasive mussels haven’t established in Washington. Decades of prevention efforts throughout the state and nationally in the U.S. and Canada have helped slow the westward spread. Detections of invasive species on watercraft and other aquatic equipment at watercraft inspections stations are a key part of preventing infestation.

Most western states that operate watercraft inspection stations during the colder months do so with reduced staff and hours, making Spokane one of the few watercraft inspection stations open and fully staffed this time of year. The station is able to operate at normal capacity thanks in part to $3.62 million in additional funding from the Washington state Legislature and federal partners. Additionally, this funding helps WDFW develop preparedness and action plans like the one implemented during the January interception.

WDFW has requested $7.2 million this legislative session to protect Washington’s waters from quagga and zebra mussels.

While WDFW works to intercept invasive mussels at Washington’s borders, anyone who recreates on the water can help prevent the spread of invasive species like quagga and zebra mussels. Any time you go out on the water, remember to clean, drain, and dry all your gear and watercraft — both motorized and non-motorized. It’s illegal to transport aquatic invasive species from one waterbody to another in the state and practicing clean, drain, dry every time you leave the water ensures you won’t receive fines up to $5,000 or a year in jail. With your help, Washington can keep invasive mussels out of our waters.

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Return Of Columbia River Smelt ( ESA-Listed 15 Years Ago)This Year Expected To Be Close To 10-Year Average; Limited, Tentative Fishery Announced

Expecting a slightly smaller run of eulachon (smelt) into the mainstem Columbia River this year than last year – about 8.6 million pounds – the two-state Columbia River Compact adopted a limited three-day-a-week commercial gillnet test fishery. The decision allows gillnetters using small mesh nets to fish for the threatened species in Zones 1 to 3 (roughly from the Astoria Megler Bridge to Puget Island).

At the same hearing, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife announced a tentative seven week two-day-a-week schedule – Wednesdays and Saturdays – for recreational smelt fishing on the Cowlitz River, which flows into the Columbia River at Longview, WA. It is unlikely that all of the tentative days would be allowed, said Matt Sturza of WDFW. In recent years, Washington has waited for run size information before announcing any recreational fishing in the Cowlitz.

As in past years, Oregon will wait until it analyzes more actual run-size information before it announces a potential opening on the Sandy River, which flows into the Columbia near Troutdale, OR.

During 2020–2024, limited recreational fisheries occurred in the Cowlitz and/or Sandy rivers. The fisheries were restricted to 1–2 days each year and 5–7 hours per day. Annual recreational harvest averaged 81,000 pounds with an average exploitation rate of 0.70 percent. Even in 2023 with a high return of smelt to the Columbia River, recreational smelt fishing was not allowed in the Cowlitz River due to a late run of the fish into the river conflicting with outgoing hatchery Chinook salmon smolts. However, a recreational fishery did take place in the Sandy River on March 30, 2023, when anglers harvested 55,595 pounds of smelt. Chinook smolt presence was not an issue

When allowed, most of the recreational harvest each year has been from the Cowlitz River and there was no recreational smelt fishing opportunity in either river in 2018 or 2019.

The Compact, which manages Columbia River fisheries from the mouth of the river to the Oregon/Washington border, approved at its public hearing Jan. 16 the non-tribal commercial smelt fishery from Jan. 20 through March 13, three days a week (Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays), from 5 am to 5 pm. This is similar to the 2024 fishery, but prior to 2023 the fishery allowed fishing was often just two days a week. The three-day opening gives the gillnetters, who use fine mesh nets to catch the smaller fish, more time in days and hours to take advantage of better tides that bring smelt upriver.

This year is the fifth year in a row that a gillnet research or test fishery has been approved to gauge the size of the run. The commercial gillnet test fishery is used to collect biological data to allow WDFW staff to further evaluate the strength of a year’s eulachon run. The landings are an in-season monitoring tool states can use to determine the recreational harvest opportunities. However, the gillnetters will be allowed to sell their catch, much of which will go to companies that will sell the fish for bait.

The fish typically begin to enter the Columbia River in December and peak tributary abundance is usually in February or March.

Eulachon abundance increased steadily from 2011 to 2014, reaching a peak abundance of 16.6 million pounds in 2014, followed by a decline to 370,000 pounds in 2018, the Compact Fact Sheet No. 3b says (Winter Fact Sheets Nos. 3a and 3b are here: https://www.dfw.state.or.us/fish/OSCRP/CRM/FS/25/01-16-25%20Winter%20Fact%20Sheet%20No.%203a.3b.pdf). Since then, Eulachon abundance has ranged from the low observed in 2018 to a high of 18.3 million pounds in 2022. Eulachon abundance in 2024 was 10.4 million pounds, greater than the 10-year average of 8.6 million pounds.

The run size this year is expected to be less than the 2024 return and similar to or less than the 10-year average of 8.6 million pounds.

Commercial landings of smelt averaged about 12,400 pounds each year between 2020 and 2024, a small exploitation rate of just 0.10%.

At this point, abundance indicators for the 2025 smelt return suggest a moderate to strong return of the older age classes (age-4 and age-5), but a weaker return of younger age classes (age-2 and age-3), the Fact Sheet says.

Columbia River Eulachon were listed as threatened under the federal Endangered Species Act in 2010. The small fish return annually to the Columbia River mainstem and several of its tributaries downstream of Bonneville Dam where they spawn. The tributaries where they spawn include the Cowlitz and the Sandy rivers. In addition, they spawn in the Lewis, Elochoman, Kalama, Grays and Deep rivers in Washington. These tributaries generally are not opened for recreational dip-netting.

A 2010 NOAA Fisheries biological review team in 2010 said climate change impacts on ocean conditions and eulachon bycatch in offshore shrimp fisheries were the most serious threats to the persistence of eulachon. The review team found that these threats, together with large declines in abundance, indicated that eulachon were at moderate risk of extinction throughout all of its range.

NOAA listed the southern distinct population segment of eulachon as threatened under the federal Endangered Species Act on March 18, 2010.The listing included all eulachon within the states of Washington, Oregon, and California, and extended from the Skeena River in British Columbia south to the Mad River in Northern California.

NOAA released an ESA recovery plan in 2017. Among the goals listed in the recovery plan was to provide limited public and commercial fishing opportunities.

A five-year review by NOAA completed in 2022 confirmed eulachon’s threatened listing status.

In September 2023 the states Oregon and Washington finalized their 2nd edition of the Washington Oregon Eulachon Management Plan. The Plan utilizes three pre-season abundance indicators to inform target harvest rates for commercial and recreational fisheries, the Fact Sheet says. The plan also includes in-season triggers that allow managers to alter harvest rates up or down depending on the apparent strength of that year’s run.

The Plan describes Pacific smelt as an anadromous species native to the west coast.

“The Columbia River basin historically supported a very large and productive population of Eulachon; however, in 1994, stocks of Eulachon from the Columbia River to the Klinaklini River in British Columbia experienced a nearly simultaneous collapse,” the Plan says.

In 1998, WDFW developed a Forage Fish Management Plan to provide guiding principles for forage fish conservation and management. In October 2001, WDFW and ODFW developed the first Washington and Oregon Eulachon Management Plan. “The States determined that management had historically not been responsive to interannual changes in abundance or distribution and developed the 2001 WOEMP to provide abundance-based guidance for Eulachon management and research activities,” the Plan says.

See the Washington Oregon Eulachon Management Plan here: https://wdfw.wa.gov/publications/02461

Winter Fact Sheets Nos. 3a and 3b are here: https://www.dfw.state.or.us/fish/OSCRP/CRM/FS/25/01-16-25%20Winter%20Fact%20Sheet%20No.%203a.3b.pdf

January 16 Joint State Action Notice is here: https://www.dfw.state.or.us/fish/OSCRP/CRM/CAN/25/250116%20Compact%20Joint%20State%20Action%20Notice.pdf

For background, see;

— CBB, February 2, 2024, HARVEST MANAGERS APPROVE COMMERCIAL RESEARCH GILLNETTING FOR ESA-LISTED COLUMBIA RIVER SMELT; IF NUMBERS GOOD, RECREATIONAL DIP-NETTING TO FOLLOW, HTTPS://COLUMBIABASINBULLETIN.ORG/HARVEST-MANAGERS-APPROVE-COMMERCIAL-RESEARCH-GILLNETTING-FOR-ESA-LISTED-COLUMBIA-RIVER-SMELT-IF-NUMBERS-GOOD-RECREATIONAL-DIP-NETTING-TO-FOLLOW/

— CBB, January 26, 2023, INCREASED SEA LION, BIRD ACTIVITY IN LOWER COLUMBIA RIVER INDICATES SMELT RUN MAY BE ON, TEST COMMERCIAL FISHERY BEGINS, https://columbiabasinbulletin.org/increased-sea-lion-bird-activity-in-lower-columbia-river-indicates-smelt-run-may-be-on-test-commercial-fishery-begins/

— CBB, April 27, 2023, SEA LIONS CHASING GOOD SMELT RUN FLOOD COLUMBIA RIVER IN HIGH NUMBERS; STAYING FOR SPRING CHINOOK FEASTING, https://columbiabasinbulletin.org/sea-lions-chasing-good-smelt-run-flood-columbia-river-in-high-numbers-staying-for-spring-chinook-feasting/

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Study Finds 56 Percent Of Caspian Tern Colony On Washington State Island Killed By Avian Flu, Some Had Relocated From Columbia River Estuary

An epidemiological study found that 56% of a large breeding colony of Caspian terns died from a 2023 outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza at Rat Island in Washington state. Since then, no birds have successfully bred on the island, raising concerns that the outbreak may have had a significant impact on an already declining Pacific-coast population.

As part of the study, a team including Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife as well as Washington State University researchers also documented that the avian flu virus H5N1 was transmitted to harbor seals for the first time in the northeastern Pacific.

While there has not been another large coastal wildlife outbreak of H5N1 since, researchers estimated that about 10–14% of the Caspian tern population in the Pacific flyway have been lost to H5N1 infections.

“This Caspian tern event was the first big marine environment avian flu outbreak for Washington. It caused a significant, punctuated mortality for the Caspian terns, which were already a species in decline throughout this flyway,” said Katherine Haman, a wildlife veterinarian for WDFW and lead author on the study in the journal Frontiers in Veterinary Science.

Caspian terns are found across the country, and until a couple years ago, their largest breeding site was an island in the lower Columbia River, downstream from Portland. Because the birds were feasting on young, endangered salmon, they were discouraged from nesting on that island. It is likely that a portion of the extremely large Columbia River colony relocated to Rat Island near Fort Flagler Park in Jefferson County near Port Townsend — then, came the avian flu in 2023.

Haman credited citizen volunteer docents from the Friends of Fort Flagler and local kayaking guides with noticing the first bird deaths on Rat Island early and alerting officials. This allowed researchers to respond early, collecting dead birds and euthanizing sick ones. A total of 1,101 adults and 520 chicks were killed by the outbreak.

The researchers also noted 15 dead harbor seals in the area which usually only sees 1 or 2 seal deaths a year. Through tissue samples, WSU researchers at the Washington Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory (WADDL) were able to first identify H5N1 in the birds, but the tests in seals were harder to confirm.

“We tend to think of avian influenza as a respiratory disease, but the seal respiratory samples were initially negative for H5N1. That seemed odd because there was a relatively high mortality in the seals, and there were also birds that were sick at the same time,” said co-author Kevin Snekvik, a WSU veterinary pathologist and WADDL executive director.

Further testing in other organs revealed that avian flu had a different pathology in the harbor seals causing an inflammatory response in their brains. The team performed a whole genome sequencing of the virus confirming that the seals likely contracted the virus from the terns.

Avian influenza has been killing many seals and sea lions in other parts of the world, particularly in South America, but so far that same spread has not yet occurred in the Pacific Northwest. The consequences for the terns in the region, however, has been more dire. There is no vaccine or treatment yet available in the U.S. for animals impacted by the avian flu. It is difficult to control in wildlife given the rapid spread and the difficulty associated with capture and handling of wild animals, so at this stage, researchers are trying to gain insights on the spread of the disease in wild populations by tracking the spread and understanding the impact.

Human cases of avian flu in Washington and elsewhere in the U.S. have occurred primarily in agricultural workers who were in close contact with infected domestic animals, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The researchers emphasized that people should not touch sick or dying wildlife, and instead report the animals on WDFW’s website.

This research received support from the Washington state legislature, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association, the Washington Department of Health, WDFW and WADDL. The study was made possible by a large collaboration including additional researchers from WSU and WDFW as well as Center Valley Animal Rescue, National Marine Fisheries Service, Pennsylvania State University, Washington Department of Health and University of California, Davis.

“The success of this study and the ongoing investigation is a result of a large number of organizations working together seamlessly. For wildlife investigations, it is absolutely paramount that we work across lines,” said co-author Tom Waltzek, a researcher with WADDL and WSU’s College of Veterinary Medicine.

Also see:

–CBB, Sept. 11, 2020, “Key Avian Predation Management Question: Is Steelhead Mortality Due To Terns, Cormorants Additive Or Compensatory?”https://columbiabasinbulletin.org/key-avian-predation-management-question-is-steelhead-mortality-due-to-terns-cormorants-additive-or-compensatory/

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States Set 2025 Columbia River Sturgeon Retention Seasons; Expect High Effort, Short Seasons

Oregon and Washington fishery managers set dates and harvest guidelines for recreational white sturgeon retention in pools backed up behind Bonneville, The Dalles and John Day dams.

Retention of the ancient fish will open Jan. 1, 2025 and close by Jan. 29 in the Bonneville and The Dalles pools and be open two-days per week – Wednesdays and Saturdays – or until harvest guidelines are met, the two-state Columbia River Compact determined at a hearing late last week. The John Day pool also opens Jan. 1, but will remain open seven days a week until its harvest guideline is met. Historically, the John Day fishery has been slower to reach its catch guideline.

In the past, sturgeon angling in the Bonneville and The Dalles pools have closed early due to high angler effort and catch rates that have resulted in harvest guidelines being reached before Jan. 29, the season end date in those pools, according to the Compact’s Winter Fact Sheet No. 1 (https://www.dfw.state.or.us/fish/OSCRP/CRM/FS/24/11-08-24%20Winter%20Fact%20Sheet%20no%201.pdf).

The Jan. 1 opening is a tradition with anglers, according to an Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife news release, but the date also contributes to a shortened retention season, as fishing effort and catch rates are high on the opening day holiday. During the Nov. 8 Compact hearing fisheries managers as well as several anglers who testified mulled over the idea of shifting away from a holiday opener in the future to provide more fishing days, but shied away from the idea without a more formal public process.

“It’s difficult to move away from Jan. 1 without a more thorough public process, as we know how important it is to a lot of people up there,” said Tucker Jones, ODFW’s Ocean Salmon and Columbia River Program Manager. “But considering the performance of these fisheries, I am skeptical that we will be able to offer a meaningful number of retention days without reconsidering a Jan. 1 opener in the future.”

When setting sturgeon retention days in the two pools, the Compact changed to a days-per-week season structure for sturgeon retention several years ago. With just two days of fishing time each week, the Compact staff has time to assess and react to catch rates in real time, and to try to extend the fishery later into the year. But the fishery continues to see high interest from anglers and harvest guidelines can be met quickly when water temperature, weather, and on-the-water conditions are favorable, ODFW said.

Over the past five years (2020–2024) the season length in the Bonneville pool has averaged 16 days, with a low of 2 days (2024) and a high of 44 days (2020). There were just 6 days of sturgeon angling in 2023, 7 days in 2021 and 20 days in 2022.

Last season (January 2024), fisheries managers saw the “highest effort ever,” said Ryan Lothrop, Columbia River Fishery Manager with the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife at the Compact hearing. “We reached 72 percent of the harvest guideline in just two days and we ended up with far fewer angling days than planned.”

In The Dalles pool over the past five years, the average season length is 21 days, with a low of 4 days (2024 and 2021) and a high of 48 days (2020). Sturgeon angling in 2022 lasted 35 days and in 2023, the season ended after 12 days.

In the John Day pool, the season has averaged 64 days and has been both longer and more consistent relative to season lengths in Bonneville and The Dalles pools, the Fact Sheet says. The season lasted 69 days in 2020, 77 days in 2021, 68 days in 2022, 32 days in 2023 and 74 days in 2024.

The recreational harvest guideline for the Bonneville pool is 675 white sturgeon per year; The Dalles guideline is 275 fish; and the guideline for the John Day pool is 105 fish. The Treaty commercial guidelines are: Bonneville – 675 sturgeon; The Dalles – 825 fish; and John Day – 175 fish. The Winter Fact Sheet says that the Bonneville Pool guideline will be reassessed by fishery managers in late January 2025 after all of the most recent stock assessment information is finalized.

Over the past 5-years harvest guidelines have increased in the Bonneville and The Dalles pools, but have remained constant in John Day pool, the Fact Sheet says.

Stock surveys are generally made in each pool every three years. The most recent stock assessment for the Bonneville pool was in 2021, the Winter Fact Sheet says. It showed a 22 percent increase in the abundance of legal-sized sturgeon (38–54-inch fork length) and an 18 percent increase in the overall 38–65-inch fork-length population. Young-of-year surveys indicate measurable recruitment on an annual basis over the past ten years, except in 2015. The results of a 2024 stock assessment for Bonneville Pool will be available in January 2025.

The 2023 survey in The Dalles pool showed a 76 percent increase in the abundance of legal-sized sturgeon (43–54-inch fork length) and a 72 percent increase in the overall 38–65-inch fork-length population. Since 2014, measurable recruitment has been detected in seven out of 10 years, but recruitment has been lower in recent years and the juvenile portion of the population (21–37-inch fork length) continues to decline, the Fact Sheet says.

The 2022 survey in the John Day pool indicated a 12 percent decrease in the abundance of legal sized sturgeon (43–54-inch fork length) and an 11 percent decrease in the overall 38–65-inch fork length population. Since 2013, measurable recruitment has only been detected once, which was in 2019, the Fact Sheet says. The spatial coverage of the spawning sanctuary in the pool was extended in 2019 to further protect reproductive adults and improve future recruitment.

The planned season dates and bag limits for white sturgeon anglers are:

— Bonneville Pool is open Wednesdays and Saturdays, Jan. 1–29 (9 days) on the mainstem Columbia River from the Bonneville Dam to The Dalles Dam, as well as all adjacent tributaries.  One White sturgeon is allowed daily, with just two fish annually. They must be at least 38-inches and no more than 54-inches fork length, which is measured in a straight line from the tip of the nose to the fork in the caudal fin (tail) with the fish laying on its side on a flat surface, with the tape measure/ruler positioned flat under the fish.

— The Dalles Pool is open Wednesdays and Saturdays Jan. 1 –29 (9 days total) from The Dalles Dam to John Day Dam, and all adjacent tributaries. One White sturgeon is allowed daily, with just two fish annually. They must be at least 43-inches and no more than 54-inches fork length.

— The John Day pool is open 7 days a week beginning Jan. 1 and will remain open until the harvest guideline is met.

The expected kept catch in Bonneville Pool is 626 fish (93 percent of the guideline) and the expected kept catch in The Dalles Pool is 261 fish (95 percent of the guideline).

Catch-and-release sturgeon angling remains open all year, except angling for sturgeon is prohibited May 1 through Aug. 31 within the designated sanctuary areas in each of the dam tailraces.

ODFW reminded anglers to always check Regulation Updates for the Columbia Zone before fishing as regulations can change quickly, https://myodfw.com/articles/regulation-updates#columbia-zone

Winter Fact Sheet No. 1 is here: https://www.dfw.state.or.us/fish/OSCRP/CRM/FS/24/11-08-24%20Winter%20Fact%20Sheet%20no%201.pdf

Nov. 8, 2024 Joint State Action Notice is here: https://www.dfw.state.or.us/fish/OSCRP/CRM/CAN/24/241108%20Compact%20Joint%20State%20Action%20Notice.pdf

For background, see:

— CBB, January 5, 2024, Sturgeon Fishing Too Good; Retention Closes From Bonneville Dam To John Day Dam, https://columbiabasinbulletin.org/sturgeon-fishing-too-good-retention-closes-from-bonneville-dam-to-john-day-dam/

— CBB, November 3, 2023, States Set Columbia River Winter Sturgeon Angling Times, Rules Above Bonneville Dam Based On Recent Stock Assessments, https://columbiabasinbulletin.org/states-set-columbia-river-winter-sturgeon-angling-times-rules-above-bonneville-dam-based-on-recent-stock-assessments/

–CBB, Nov. 11, 2022, States Set 2023 White Sturgeon Fishing Season On Portions Of Columbia River With A Days-Per-Week Approach, https://columbiabasinbulletin.org/states-set-2023-white-sturgeon-fishing-season-on-portions-of-columbia-river-with-a-days-per-week-approach/

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WDFW Opens Hatchery Steelhead Fishing In Areas Of Upper Columbia For First Time In 9 Years, 2024 Returns Exceed Wild Fish Escapement Goals

The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife announced that steelhead fishing will open in select areas of the Upper Columbia this month. This marks the first time in nine years that anglers can enjoy fishing for hatchery steelhead in these waters.

Hatchery steelhead and coho fisheries opened Oct. 16 in the Methow River and adjacent mainstem Columbia River.

The Upper Columbia is defined as that portion of the mainstem Columbia River from Priest Rapids Dam and extending to Chief Joseph Dam and its tributaries. The Upper Columbia steelhead Distinct Population Segment (DPS) is comprised of four primary populations: Wenatchee, Entiat, Methow, and Okanogan. Under the Endangered Species Act, a DPS is a group of vertebrate animals that is separate from other groups of the same species and plays an important role in the species’ survival. As of the 2009 ESA listing, both wild (or natural) and hatchery fish produced to support the natural populations are listed as threatened.

Three of the four populations (Wenatchee, Methow, and Okanogan) have supplementation hatchery programs associated with them.

Upper Columbia steelhead hatchery supplementation programs help to support the recovery of this ESA-listed species by increasing the natural adult population abundance, while ensuring appropriate distribution, genetic integrity, and adult spawner productivity.

To help accomplish this, adult management actions are authorized under the ESA permits assigned to these programs. Adult management is defined as the intentional removal (through collection at weirs/dams and in conservation fisheries) of returning adult hatchery-origin steelhead to directly influence the number and origin composition of fish on spawning grounds.

For the last several years, adult steelhead returns to the Upper Columbia populations have been below the minimum abundance threshold of 9,550 adults at Priest Rapids Dam, to allow for any fishing. Upper Columbia steelhead, a summer-run stock, were first listed as endangered in 1997 under the ESA, before being reclassified as threatened in 2009. Both wild and hatchery steelhead are listed, and as a result, traditional recreational fishing may only occur when returning hatchery steelhead are in excess of spawning escapement and hatchery broodstock needs.

Steelhead returns appeared to be rebounding in 2023 with approximately 7,601 adults over Priest Rapids Dam. So far, an estimated 9,336+ adults are destined for the Upper Columbia over Priest Rapids Dam in 2024. With the 2024 return comprised of about 30% wild fish, minimum wild escapement goals are expected to be met in select areas, facilitating the need to remove surplus hatchery adults. Therefore, WDFW is able to offer and a carefully managed conservation fishery for recreational anglers to help meet management objectives.

Upper Columbia hatchery programs are designed to supplement the natural spawning population of steelhead, particularly in years of low wild fish numbers. During years with moderate to high returns, like in 2024, managing the number of hatchery steelhead becomes a priority. By selectively removing excess hatchery fish, WDFW aims to increase the proportion of wild steelhead on the spawning grounds, contributing to their recovery.

“This fishery isn’t just about recreation — it’s a vital conservation tool. Anglers play a key role in helping to remove excess hatchery steelhead, making room for wild fish to succeed. These conservation fisheries are permitted by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) under strict guidelines and decision matrix, ensuring that they are sustainable and beneficial for the wild steelhead population,” said Chad Jackson, a regional fish program manager at WDFW.

Starting Oct. 16, the following sections will open for hatchery steelhead and coho:

  • Methow River: From the mouth to County Road 1535 (Burma Road) Bridge.
  • Upper Columbia River: From Beebe Bridge (Highway 97) to Highway 173 Bridge at Brewster.

Both areas allow anglers to keep up to two hatchery steelhead or two coho, or one of each, per day. It’s mandatory to retain hatchery steelhead, easily identified by their clipped adipose fin, while wild steelhead must be released immediately and unharmed. Selective gear rules and night closures will be in effect to protect the fish.

Additionally, productive fishing spots like the Wells Dam tailrace are worth noting. Each year, fishery managers release a large number of hatchery smolts here, making it a prime location for steelhead.

“Opening this fishery in the Upper Columbia represents a carefully considered step in balancing recreational opportunities with the protection of a threatened species. All steelhead fishing activities must be implemented consistent with the terms and conditions authorized in the ESA Section 10 permits issued to WDFW by NOAA,” said Mike Tonseth, Columbia River ESA permitting and compliance team lead, WDFW.

While the Methow River and sections of the Upper Columbia River are open, other areas like the Wenatchee and Okanogan rivers remain closed. These areas have not yet met the required abundance thresholds for opening. However, WDFW will continue to actively monitor returns weekly to determine if additional or expanded conservation fisheries could be authorized.

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Conservation Groups Settle Lawsuit With WDFW Over Lower Columbia River Hatcheries, Litigation Continues With NOAA, ODFW

A lawsuit contending that lower Columbia River hatcheries downstream of Bonneville Dam are a threat to wild salmon and steelhead listed under the federal Endangered Species Act was settled in part last week.

The lawsuit was filed in Western Washington U.S. District Court April 17 by the Wild Fish Conservancy and The Conservation Angler. Defendants are NOAA Fisheries, the Oregon and Washington departments of fish and wildlife and Oregon’s Clatsop County.

The conservation groups contended that the agencies continue to fund and operate hatcheries under the Mitchell Act and Select Area Fishery Enhancement (SAFE) programs while exceeding limits under the ESA designed to prevent extinction of imperiled wild salmon and steelhead.

The two groups settled Sept. 19 with the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, agreeing in a joint consent decree to 10 measures the fish and wildlife agency has agreed it will correct.

The groups will continue to litigate in court against NOAA Fisheries, ODFW, and Clatsop County to ensure that “our states’ iconic salmonid species receive the ESA protections they are afforded by law.”

“The settlement agreement is a favorable outcome for at-risk wild salmon and steelhead populations in the Columbia River. While we are encouraged by this positive development, we remain discouraged by our fishery management agencies’ recurring failure to comply with the ESA when managing Columbia River hatcheries,” said David Moskowitz, Executive Director of The Conservation Angler.

The agreement requires WDFW to take essential measures that will result in more responsible, legally permissible, and transparent management practices at the Mitchell Act hatcheries they operate, the conservation groups said in a Sept. 26 news release.

Among the requirements of the settlement are the termination of WDFW’s Deep River net pens coho program and the non-native Washougal steelhead program, as well as a reduction in the release of Chinook from the Kalama/Fallert program. The settlement also paves the way for Oregon and Washington to collaborate on advancing alternative commercial fishing methods with the goal of reducing hatchery straying and supporting the recovery of wild salmon and steelhead populations, the groups said.

“WDFW is pleased to resolve this litigation,” said Director Kelly Susewind. “This agreement allows us to focus on conserving and recovering our salmon, steelhead, adaptively managing our hatcheries, and providing sustainable fisheries.”

The complaint calls out Mitchell Act and SAFE hatchery operations downstream of Bonneville Dam, and funding by the Department of Commerce and NOAA Fisheries, the states of Oregon and Washington, and Clatsop County, for “chronic and ongoing violations of the federal Endangered Species Act” at lower river hatcheries that produce Chinook, coho and chum salmon, and steelhead.

The groups said these hatchery operations are failing to comply with the requirements of their program biological opinions, which are “designed to prevent the extinction of ESA-listed salmon and steelhead and to protect the ecosystems where fish spawn and rear.”

Furthermore, they said, these hatchery operations are failing to comply with vital limitations and safeguards required by the ESA and recognized by NOAA Fisheries as necessary to prevent the extinction of at-risk wild salmon and steelhead.

The Wild Fish Conservancy had previously litigated over these same Columbia River hatchery programs in 2016 to force NOAA Fisheries to comply with the ESA when funding and authorizing Mitchell Act hatcheries. That lawsuit contended that since a 1999 NOAA Fisheries consultation, eight salmon species protected under the ESA had been harmed by the federal agency’s hatchery programs, including the Lower Columbia River Chinook and coho salmon that the litigation was seeking to protect.

“We are disheartened that, nearly a decade later, the responsibility for enforcing the ESA continues to require public intervention, and that non-compliant hatchery programs have been allowed to perpetuate harm to wild salmon, steelhead, and Southern Resident killer whales threatened with extinction,” said Emma Helverson, Executive Director of Wild Fish Conservancy.

See CBB, August 5, 2016, Wild Fish Conservancy Seeks Injunction To Block Use Of Mitchell Act Funds For Basin Hatcheries, https://columbiabasinbulletin.org/wild-fish-conservancy-seeks-injunction-to-block-use-of-mitchell-act-funds-for-basin-hatcheries/

The 1938 Mitchell Act established many of the hatcheries in the Columbia River basin with the goal to mitigate the adverse effects to salmon and steelhead caused by the construction of dams, water diversions, logging, and pollution. Funding for Mitchell Act hatcheries has ranged between $15 and $22 million each year, which supports roughly one-third of all hatchery production in the Columbia basin.

According to the two conservation groups, the SAFE program was developed by the Northwest Power and Conservation Council in 1993 to enhance fisheries.

“The program (SAFE) was a well-intended attempt to concentrate hatchery fish releases and fisheries in an ‘off channel’ location away from wild salmon migration and spawning areas in the Columbia River,” the two conservation groups said in April.

However, they say, a 2023 study that evaluated the impact of these hatchery programs ($9 billion over 40 years in the Columbia River basin) showed no evidence of increased abundance of wild salmon and steelhead.

Specific and detailed terms of the settlement are:

— Deep River Net Pens Coho Salmon Program. WDFW shall terminate the Deep River Net Pens coho salmon program with releases in April 2025 of juvenile coho salmon from the 2023 brood year. Within one year, WDFW shall have decommissioned and removed from the river the Deep River Net Pens.

— Washougal River Steelhead Hatchery Program. Within ninety days, WDFW shall terminate the segregated winter steelhead hatchery program in the Washougal River basin and release into non-anadromous waters or remove any hatchery steelhead remaining in the facilities associated with that program. WDFW shall not collect broodstock or otherwise initiate an integrated steelhead hatchery program in the Washougal River basin unless and until it receives coverage under an Incidental Take Statement applicable to ESA-listed species associated with that program under the ESA. Until the terms of this Consent Decree expire, WDFW shall limit annual releases under any integrated steelhead hatchery program in the Washougal River basin to no more than 40,000 hatchery fish.

— Kalama River/Fallert Creek Chinook Salmon Hatchery Program. WDFW shall limit releases from the Kalama River/Fallert Creek Chinook salmon hatchery program in 2025 to 1.9 million hatchery fish. WDFW intends to evaluate pHOS data (number of hatchery fish found on spawning grounds) to determine whether that release number may be adjusted in future years consistent with the ESA.

— Weir Operations Plan. WDFW shall develop a Weir Operations Plan within 30 days that includes the information for any existing or planned weirs funded through the Mitchell Act that WDFW operates or plans to operate in the Lower Columbia River (below Bonneville Dam) as part of the agency’s efforts to reduce pHOS. The plan shall address general operations of the weir; criteria for assessing the efficacy of the weir in reducing pHOS and how that will be monitored; criteria for assessing the weir’s impacts on the productivity of the wild salmonid population(s) and how that will be monitored; and how operations will be adapted based on these ongoing assessments. The conservation groups have 14 days to respond and afterwards WDFW will have 60 days to finalize the plan and submit it to NOAA Fisheries for consideration in the ongoing ESA section 7 consultation on hatchery programs funded under the Mitchell Act.

— Compliance Review and Data Disclosure Program. Within 180 days WDFW shall develop and implement a Compliance Review and Data Disclosure Program that will consist of databases hosted on WDFW’s website that will provide information for each of the lower Columbia River Mitchell Act Hatchery Programs and SAFE Programs operated by WDFW.

— WDFW’s Gillnet License Buyback. WDFW shall send a letter to ODFW requesting that ODFW reserve any impacts calculated to result from Washington State’s voluntary buy-back program for non-tribal commercial gillnet fishing licenses. The impacts should be reserved for conservation through increased wild salmonid escapement and/or for mark selective fisheries capable of harvesting surplus hatchery-reared salmon where needed to meet federal genetic protection requirements for wild salmon populations in a manner consistent with state-tribal fishery management agreements, the settlement agreement says.

— Alternative Fishing Gear Permitting. WDFW shall send a letter to ODFW requesting that both agencies amend the December 22, 2023, memorandum regarding Columbia River Emerging Commercial Fishery Direction in order to adjust the cap on authorizations allowed for alternative gear.

— Tule Work Group Meeting Minutes and Notes. WDFW shall provide the Conservation Groups within seven days with copies of any agendas, meeting minutes, and materials distributed to attendees for meetings of the Tule Work Group.

— BiOp Compliance Meetings. Within sixty days of NOAA Fisheries issuance of a new BiOp on its funding of hatchery programs under the Mitchell Act, the Settling Parties shall meet with WDFW to identify what measures it intends to implement to comply with the new BiOps and the 2021 SAFE BiOp’s requirements.

— Recovery of Litigation Expenses. WDFW stipulates that the Conservation Groups are entitled to an award from WDFW of their reasonable litigation expenses, including costs and fees (including attorneys’ and retained litigation expert fees), incurred in pursuing their ESA claims against WDFW. The Settling Parties have agreed to $160,000.

The Sept. 19 consent decree is here: https://wildfishconservancy.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/064.1.proposed.consent.decree.pls_.and_.wdfw_.pdf

The April complaint is here: https://wildfishconservancy.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/001.0.complaint-5.pdf

For background, see:

— CBB, May 3, 2024, Lawsuit Says Lower Columbia River Hatcheries Violating ESA By Releasing Too Many Fish, Threatening Listed Wild Salmon, Steelhead, https://columbiabasinbulletin.org/lawsuit-says-lower-columbia-river-hatcheries-violating-esa-by-releasing-too-many-fish-threatening-listed-wild-salmon-steelhead/

— CBB, February 2, 2024, Hatcheries: Groups To Sue Over Lower Columbia Hatcheries’ Impacts On Wild Salmon; Noaa Seeks Comments On Expanding Hatcheries To Help Orcas, https://columbiabasinbulletin.org/hatcheries-groups-to-sue-over-lower-columbia-hatcheries-impacts-on-wild-salmon-noaa-seeks-comments-on-expanding-hatcheries-to-help-orcas/

— CBB, August 11, 2022, Federal Judge Says Noaa’s Approval Of Southeast Alaska Troll Salmon Fishery Fails To Protect Esa-Listed Salmon, Whales, https://columbiabasinbulletin.org/federal-judge-says-noaas-approval-of-southeast-alaska-troll-salmon-fishery-fails-to-protect-esa-listed-salmon-whales/

–CBB, Aug. 23, 2022, NOAA Says No Change Needed To Esa-Listing Status Of Interior Columbia River Basin Salmon/Steelhead; Two Populations Face High Extinction Risk https://columbiabasinbulletin.org/noaa-says-no-change-needed-to-esa-listing-status-of-interior-columbia-river-basin-salmon-steelhead-two-populations-face-high-extinction-risk/

— CBB, July 15, 2022, White House Issues Reports On Basin Salmon Recovery, Costs; ‘Business As Usual’ Not Restoring Esa-Listed Salmon, Steelhead, HTTPS://columbiabasinbulletin.org/WHITE-HOUSE-ISSUES-REPORTS-ON-BASIN-SALMON-RECOVERY-COSTS-BUSINESS-AS-USUAL-NOT-RESTORING-ESA-LISTED-SALMON-STEELHEAD/

–CBB, Oct. 21, 2021, Federal Judge Says Noaa Violated Esa When Approving Alaska Salmon Fishery; No Certainty New Hatcheries Will Mitigate Harvest, https://columbiabasinbulletin.org/federal-judge-says-noaa-violated-esa-when-approving-alaska-salmon-fishery-no-certainty-new-hatcheries-will-mitigate-harvest/

— CBB, October 14, 2021, Wild Fish Advocates File Lawsuit Challenging Washington Hatchery Reform Policy Changes, Increased Hatchery Salmon For Orcas, https://columbiabasinbulletin.org/wild-fish-advocates-file-lawsuit-challenging-washington-hatchery-reform-policy-changes-increased-hatchery-salmon-for-orcas/

— CBB, May 7, 2021, Nez Perce Study Shows Snake River Basin Salmon/Steelhead At Risk Of Extinction; Tribe Says Emergency Actions Needed, https://columbiabasinbulletin.org/white-house-issues-reports-on-basin-salmon-recovery-costs-business-as-usual-not-restoring-esa-listed-salmon-steelhead/

–See CBB, April 29, 2021, “NOAA Fisheries Conducting Status Review Of Endangered Southern Resident Killer Whales,” https://columbiabasinbulletin.org/noaa-fisheries-conducting-status-review-of-endangered-southern-resident-killer-whales/

— CBB, March 5, 2021, ESA-Listed Puget Sound Killer Whales Once Relied On Now Endangered Salmon For Prey; Produce More Hatchery Fish To Help 75 Remaining Southern Residents? https://columbiabasinbulletin.org/esa-listed-puget-sound-killer-whales-once-relied-on-now-endangered-salmon-for-prey-produce-more-hatchery-fish-to-help-75-remaining-southern-residents/

–CBB, Jan. 15, 2021, Washington State Salmon Recovery Report: Most Populations Not Making Progress, Some On Path To Extinction https://columbiabasinbulletin.org/washington-state-salmon-recovery-report-most-populations-not-making-progress-some-on-path-to-extinction/

— CBB, Dec. 17, 2020, Center For Biological Diversity Issues Intent To Sue Over Lack Of Final Rule For Expanded Critical Habitat For Killer Whales https://columbiabasinbulletin.org/center-for-biological-diversity-issues-intent-to-sue-over-lack-of-final-rule-for-expanded-critical-habitat-for-killer-whales/

–CBB, April 1, 2016, “Wild Fish Conservancy Files Lawsuit To Force Federal Consultation On Basin Mitchell Act Hatcheries” https://columbiabasinbulletin.org/436361.aspx

— CBB, Jan. 15, 2016, “Study: Chinook Salmon Make Up 80 Percent Of Diet For ESA-Listed Killer Whales In Pacific Northwest” https://columbiabasinbulletin.org/435857.aspx

—CBB, January 15, 2016, “Wild Fish Advocates File Notice Against Mitchell Act Hatcheries, 60 Million Smolts Annually,” https://columbiabasinbulletin.org/435862.aspx

— CBB, June 27, 2014, NOAA Report Details Threats To Southern Resident Killer Whales; Majority Of Diet Comes From Chinook https://columbiabasinbulletin.org/noaa-report-details-threats-to-southern-resident-killer-whales-majority-of-diet-comes-from-chinook/

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WDFW Research Shows Fatal White-Nose Syndrome In Bats Continues To Spread, 11 New Counties In 2024

White-nose syndrome, an often-fatal disease of hibernating bats, continues to spread in Washington. Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife and research partners documented white-nose syndrome and the fungus that causes white-nose syndrome in eleven new counties in 2024.

Scientists with WDFW have been working with U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Geological Survey, U.S. Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Department of Energy, Department of Health, bat rehabilitators, private landowners and other non-government organizations on surveys and research, which helped to uncover new detections of white-nose syndrome and the fungus that causes it.

“The fungus that causes white-nose syndrome was detected in Clallam, Clark, Grant, Grays Harbor, Island, Kitsap, Klickitat, Okanogan, and Whatcom counties for the first time in 2024,” said Abby Tobin, bat species lead for WDFW. “In addition, white-nose syndrome was confirmed in Benton and Thurston counties for the first time this year. WDFW and partners continue our measures to survey for and respond to white-nose syndrome in Washington, including testing emerging disease treatments.”

White-nose syndrome is caused by the fungus Pseudogymnoascus destructans, which attacks the skin of hibernating bats and damages their wings, making it difficult for them to fly. Infected bats often leave hibernation too early, which causes them to deplete their fat reserves and become dehydrated or starve to death. White-nose syndrome has caused vulnerable bat populations to decline in many parts of North America. While the syndrome is often fatal to bats, it does not affect humans, livestock, or other wildlife.

Bat rehabilitators confirmed the first case of white-nose syndrome in the western U.S. in King County in 2016. Since then, WDFW has confirmed over 280 cases of the disease and fungus in the state.

To date, WDFW has confirmed white-nose syndrome in nine Washington counties. The fungus that causes white-nose syndrome has been detected in 21 counties. Researchers have confirmed four Washington bat species with white-nose syndrome, with four additional species carrying the fungus but not yet detected with the disease. A map of fungus and white-nose syndrome detections in Washington is available on WDFW’s white-nose syndrome webpage. https://wdfw.wa.gov/species-habitats/diseases/bat-white-nose

WDFW urges people to not handle wildlife, especially dead wildlife or individuals that appear sick. If you find sick or dead bats or notice bats acting strangely, please report your sighting on the WDFW website or call 360-902-2515. Bats flying or roosting outside during the winter is an example of noteworthy behavior that can be associated with white-nose syndrome, but not always.

Even though the fungus primarily spreads from contact between bats, humans can unintentionally spread it as well. People can carry fungal spores on clothing, shoes, or recreation equipment that touches the fungus. To learn more and to get the most up-to-date decontamination protocols and guidance on limiting the spread of white-nose syndrome, visit whitenosesyndrome.org.

Washington is home to 15 bat species that play an important role in their native ecosystems. WDFW partners with numerous state, federal, tribal, and non-government organizations to proactively survey Washington bat populations for white-nose syndrome and test emerging preventative treatments.

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