Decision Expected This Summer On Application To Remove More Sea Lions
- April 17, 2020
- John Harrison
Application targets aggressive sea lions that prey on Columbia River fish between the ocean and McNary Dam.
Category – Fish and wildlife
Warming Ocean Poses New Challenges For Salmon Researchers
- April 17, 2020
- John Harrison
Data suggests that the first year juvenile fish spend in the ocean is critical to their growth and survival.
2020 Columbia River Salmon And Steelhead Forecast: Low, Again
- April 17, 2020
- John Harrison
The states predict a total 2020 return to the mouth of the river of about 1.2 million fish, a slight increase from 940,000 in 2019. Sockeye is the bright spot.
Corona Virus Precautions Impact State Fish And Wildlife Policy Guidance and Field Work
- April 17, 2020
- John Harrison
Social distancing, stay-home orders, and other public-safety responses to the COVID-19 pandemic are causing cancellation and delays of work on fish and wildlife projects in the Columbia River Basin, state and federal agencies and tribes have reported.
Fisheries Scientists Predict Another Down Year For Eulachon, AKA Pacific Smelt, In The Columbia River
- March 20, 2020
- John Harrison
The 2020 run of Columbia River Eulachon, a small fish also known as Pacific Smelt, is expected to be as good or better than the 2019 run, but the run this year is expected to continue a downward trend and, once again, recreational and sport fisheries have been curtailed -- as they have been every year since 2010.
Columbia River Estuary Projects Are Improving Habitat For Migrating Juvenile Salmon and Steelhead
- March 20, 2020
- John Harrison
More than 14,000 acres of floodplain have been opened, including 500 acres in 2019 alone.
Council Comments On Proposed Federal Rule Change Regarding Cormorants That Kill ESA-Listed Species
- March 02, 2020
Fish-eating birds, including Caspian terns, double-crested cormorants, and gulls, are killing half, or more, of the juvenile Upper Columbia steelhead during their annual outmigration down the Columbia River to the Pacific Ocean. The Council's letter draws attention to the problem.
Fish-eating Birds Kill Half, Or More, Of Upper Columbia Steelhead Smolts, Research Shows
- February 19, 2020
- John Harrison
Juvenile fish face a multitude of dangers as they migrate down the Columbia and Snake rivers to the ocean every spring – disease, water temperature and quality, hydropower dam passage, predatory fish, but the extent of predation by birds is alarming.
Council Appoints Patty O’Toole to Fish and Wildlife Director
- January 23, 2020
The Council has appointed Patty O’Toole to the position of Fish and Wildlife Division Director. She had been the division’s acting director since August 15, 2019.
Ceremony Honors Groundbreaking For Umatilla Tribes' Long Awaited Walla Walla Salmon Hatchery
- January 13, 2020
- John Harrison
Planning that began in the late 1980s finally is over and construction can begin on a spring Chinook hatchery on the South Fork Walla Walla River that will be operated by the Umatilla Tribe.