13 minute read
PAIUTE CUTTHROAT REVIVAL
Just-released Paiute cutthroat trout swim in Alpine County’s Silver King Creek inside California and Nevada’s Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest, the fish’s historic home. Despite a threat from last summer’s Slink Fire, a group project headed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and California Department of Fish and Wildlife has thus far been successful. (RACHEL VAN HORNE/USDA FOREST SERVICE)
DESPITE DEVASTATING WILDFIRE, ALPINE COUNTY PAIUTE CUTTHROAT RESTORATION SUCCEEDING
By Erica Hupp
The Paiute cutthroat trout made national headlines last year when the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest, California Department of Fish and Wildlife, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and other partners returned this Golden State native to its home waters in Alpine County for the first time in more than 100 years.
The Paiute cutthroat was one of the first species in the nation listed under the federal Endangered Species Act in the 1960s. Recovery efforts continued this past October when fisheries biologists relocated 44 of the trout by pack animals from the nearby Corral Valley Creek into Silver King Creek, the fish’s historic home. Both creeks are in the Carson-Iceberg Wilderness on the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest.
“In 2019, the first translocation effort was completed when 30 Paiute cutthroat trout were moved from Coyote Valley Creek to Silver King Creek,” said Rachel Van Horne, fisheries biologist for the federal forest. “It was a momentous occasion, but
CDFW fisheries biologist John Hanson releases the trout into Silver King Creek. (RACHEL VAN HORNE/
USDA FOREST SERVICE)
the translocation efforts into the mainstem of Silver King Creek will need to continue yearly until a self-sustaining population has been established.”
A GENETICALLY PURE POPULATION of Paiute
cutthroat was established in Corral Valley Creek and other suitable waters decades ago to ensure survival of the species while restoration work took place within Silver King Creek to remove introduced nonnative trout, which displaced and hybridized with the native Paiutes.
The Slink Fire, which occurred in September 2020, added urgency to the effort. The 26,759-acre wilfirefire burned about half of the Corral Valley Creek watershed, potentially threatening the purestrain population.
“I would like to recognize the great job the three incident management teams – Sierra Front Team No. 3, Great Basin Team No. 6 and Nevada Team No. 3 – did to protect the Paiute cutthroat trout habitat during the Slink Fire,” said Bill Dunkelberger, Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest supervisor.
“Without everyone’s hard work, the Paiute cutthroat trout population in Corral Valley Creek may have been decimated and this would have been a huge loss for the recovery effort,” added Dunkelberger.
According to Chad Mellison, USFWS fisheries biologist and Slink Fire wildland fire resource advisor, or READ, the issue with wildfires is that their severity can influence fish populations and their habitat. As vegetation burns, increased sediment erodes into nearby bodies of water. "This material fills in spaces where fish would lay eggs and can, in some cases, damage their gills. Migration routes can also be blocked or altered,” explained Mellison. As a READ, he provides guidance to agency administrators and incident management teams to help them develop suppression strategies that best avoid, minimize or mitigate impacts to critical natural resources.
Another significant issue is temperature change. Fish with precise habitat requirements, like these high-elevation cutts, are most at risk. When plants that shade cold-water streams are destroyed, the overall water temperature rises. A change of even just a few degrees can have an impact on metabolic and reproductive rates of the fish living there.
ONCE THE AREA WAS deemed safe, Van Horne, who was also a member of the Slink Fire’s Burned Area Emergency Response Team, went out to Corral Valley to see the effects of the fire. The BAER Team is made up of scientists and specialists with expertise in soils, hydrology, natural and cultural resources, engineering and recreation. They conduct assessments of
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CDFW biologists perform population assessments of Paiute cutts in Corral Valley Creek the week before the lightning-caused Slink Fire ignited (below). These surveys help the biologists determine how many fish can be removed without affecting the population in the donor stream. (CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF
FISH AND WILDLIFE; CHAD MELLIS/US FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE)
the burned area to determine treatments needed to minimize threats to human life and mitigate unacceptable degradation to natural and cultural resources in an area burned by a fire.
“I was nicely surprised with the mosaic burn, which includes patches of burned and unburned areas, that occurred in the Corral Valley,” said Van Horne.
Van Horne explained that this type of burning is known to support biodiversity outcomes, but until the area recovers, Corral Valley Creek will need to be continuously monitored to ensure the Paiute habitat is not negatively affected by the fire. Since this portion of the fire was within wilderness and because of the overall positive effects of the fire to the landscape, there were no on-the-ground
All the native cutthroat that were collected in Corral Valley Creek were measured and weighed, and genetic samples were taken. After examination, they were placed in fish cans that were placed on mules for transportation to Silver King Creek. (JOANNA GILKESON/USFWS)
Rachel Van Horne, Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest fisheries biologist, photographs CDFW’s Hanson as he releases trout. “Each year that Paiute are moved into Silver King Creek is one step closer to a self-sustaining population,” Van Horne says. (LESLIE ALBER/CDFW)
“Without everyone’s hard work, the Paiute cutthroat trout population in Corral Valley Creek may have been decimated and this would have been a huge loss for the recovery effort,” says federal forest supervisor Bill Dunkelberger. (RACHEL
landscape treatments recommended for Corral Valley.
To ensure that this population of trout is protected until recovery occurs, the national forest worked with partners to come up with the best plan moving forward. CDFW decided to concentrate their relocation efforts from Corral Valley Creek to Silver King Creek in the event that post-fire sediment impacts occurred.
“Recovering this iconic trout has been a top priority for CDFW for many years. Continuing to move fish into their historic range is critical for long-term success of the project and for genetics management,” said state fisheries biologist Sarah Mussulman. “I’m very pleased that despite many additional challenges due to COVID and wildfires, we were able to successfully move another 44 fish this year. This is worth celebrating!”
The translocation from Corral Valley Creek also served a dual purpose of continuing to build the population in the mainstem of Silver King Creek, while protecting the genetics of the fish in Corral Valley Creek should post-fire effects impact the population as the area moves into the winter.
Genetic samples were taken from all fish that were moved from Corral Valley Creek, so biologists will be able to track their reproductive success in the mainstem of Silver King Creek as a self-sustaining population is established.
“When we walked up to Silver King Creek to release the fish from Corral Valley Creek, there was one of the fish we released last year swimming in the pool!” added Van Horne. “Seeing that fish thriving in its historic range is what this project is all about!”
“Each year that Paiute are moved into Silver King Creek is one step closer to a selfsustaining population. Hopefully next year when we walk to the stream’s edge, we will see baby fish!” said Van Horne. “Natural reproduction within the Silver King Creek would be a momentous milestone for this recovery effort, so stay tuned.” CS
Editor’s note: Erica Hupp is a public affairs officer for the U.S. Forest Service’s HumboldtToiyabe National Forest. For more, go to fs.usda.gov/htnf.
The sun was shining on this youngster the day he caught his steelhead, and despite the wet weather the North Coast has experienced this winter, fellow anglers have been finding reasons to smile as well. (MIKE STRATMAN/
REDWOOD COAST FISHING)
RAIN, RAIN, COME AND STAY
By Chris Cocoles
Eureka-area fishing guide Mike Stratman said he was planning to spend a couple quiet days at home while a storm blew in from the Pacific. As a steelhead angler, he couldn’t be more excited to see the rain tumble down.
“All in all, we need all the water we can get, so this storm was more than welcome,” said Stratman, who owns and operates Redwood Coast Fishing (707-601-8757; redwoodcoastfishing.com).
At that point in mid-January, most of the rivers in the area – including the Smith south of the Oregon border and the Chetco just across the state line – were blown out and a bit brown in color, but a rainless stretch had them dropping back into fishable shape by later in the month.
Humboldt County rivers such as the Trinity, Klamath and Eel received less rain than fisheries further north, so Stratman is hopeful for a solid stretch this month.
“Our February prospects look good, especially if we keep getting weather!” stated Stratman, who admitted that January, which in the past has produced some good fishing, started
BETTER LATE FISH THAN NEVER
Steelhead anglers used to count on Christmas miracles in the form of steelhead arriving just in time for the holidays.
From rivers as far north as the Chetco across the border in Oregon down to the Eel south of Eureka, the fish were the ultimate stocking stuffers in late December.
“However, in the last five years or so, that early component of the run has been slow,” guide Mike Stratman says. “Now it seems that the run doesn't really get going until the second week of January or so.”
What Stratman and other anglers are now pondering is why the steelhead are arriving later and later from the ocean.
“At this point, no one knows, but I have to believe it has everything to do with the fact we haven’t had many wet Novembers in the last five years,” he says. “While it’s a bummer the early fishing has been slow, late February and March have seen really good numbers of bright steelhead, so it seems as if the run has been pushed back a few weeks.”
But while the holiday tradition of side drifting or pulling plugs has been a bit soured for steelie chasers in recent years, the later runs have offered some great late-season fishing.
On his site, redwoodcoastfishing.com, Stratman says that March offers some of the most underrated fishing opportunities for steelhead. Part of the allure of this time of year is the fishing pressure tends to decline as spring approaches. Postspawn fish will start appearing by the end of February.
“When you simultaneously have fish coming up and down, you can see some pretty fantastic fishing in uncrowded conditions. So, late February and March can be a really pleasant time to go fishing, in my mind anyways,” Stratman says. “While on average the fish aren’t as pretty late in the season, the numbers can be good, and we do see some gorgeous fish this time of year too.” –CC
There are several good options for steelheaders – from the Chetco River across the border in Oregon all the way down to the
Eel south of Eureka. (MIKE STRATMAN/REDWOOD COAST FISHING)
slowly (see sidebar, previous page).
“But that has been the case the last few years,” he added. “Our runs have really started peaking in late January through February, and I expect that to probably be the case this year as well.”
“STABLE” STEELIES
Runs come and go, but Stratman believes the region’s prime steelhead rivers have remained “pretty stable” over time. He cited the relatively low human population in Humboldt and Del Norte Counties as contributing to a mostly healthy run traditionally.
“But like any anadromous fish, they are subject to lots of variation in the environment, and thus their runs show quite a bit of cyclical variation,” he said. “In my opinion, a run of steelhead in our rivers can be relatively predictable by looking at the conditions a particular year-class of fish was spawned in.”
Stratman mentioned the very wet winter in 2017 – after California suffered through an extended drought throughout the middle of the decade – that brought back a large number of spawned fish last year.
“If they were hatched in a wet winter, they usually thrive,” he said. “In a drought winter, they usually have a downturn.”
LOTS OF OPTIONS
Most anglers have their favorite spot or go-to rivers they rely on, but Stratman is a guide who likes to mix up the destinations.
“In reality, any river in the area that is green should be productive on a given day. That’s why I don’t limit myself to one or two rivers,” he said. “It pays to be versatile and be willing to travel a bit to get in the best conditions.”
Still, with a possible wet winter looming, he anticipated heading north of Eureka to the Smith and Chetco, as those waterways tend to clear rather fast.
“Conversely, if a dry stretch of weather has set up, I could be anywhere on the Eel system or even over on the lower Trinity or Klamath,” Stratman added. “The Mad is another top producer in Humboldt County, but I try to leave that to the bank fishermen – at least until March.”
“Our February prospects look good, especially if we keep getting weather!” forecasts guide Mike Stratman. “Our runs have really started peaking in late January through February, and I expect that to probably be the case this year as well.”
(MOSTLY) A SIDESHOW
Much of the steelhead fishing approach in Northern California is done via side drifting bait, yarn and a Fish Pill or bead.
“In certain situations, we also run plugs if there aren’t a bunch of boats on the river,” said Stratman, who will also plunk from the banks of highwater rivers.
The Smith is usually the river Stratman will try his luck from the shore. Plunking can be a bit of an underappreciated if unspectacular technique for coaxing a bite.
“It’s certainly the least glamorous way to catch steelhead, and I don’t force my clients’ hand to do it,” he noted. “But some of the biggest number days can happen while plunking. (There are) lots of traveling fish on high-water days.” CS
