Headlines
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OSU Study Shows Improved Reproductive Fitness For First-gen Wild-born McKenzie Springers
Oregon State University researchers report on a study that measured reproductive fitness of first-generation wild-born spring Chinook compared to hatchery kings spawning on the gravel in an Upper Willamette river, finding the former produced more offspring than the latter.
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SW WA, Lower Columbia Fishing Report (4-15-24)
Mid-April 2024 spring Chinook and steelhead catch stats for the Columbia River below Bonneville Dam and select Southwest Washington tributaries.
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ODFW To Begin North Umpqua Springer Tagging, Monitoring Project
Later this month, ODFW will tag a total of 200 wild and hatchery spring Chinook at Winchester Dam and then use telemetry to learn more about their movements and behavior. Caught tagged fish must be released, the agency states.
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OR Wolf Poachings Set Back W. Zone Management Flexibility; State Pop. Same As Last Year
ODFW’s annual wolf report is out and the agency says there was a minimum of 178 wolves in Oregon at the end of 2023 – the same as in December 2022 but also not counting 10 taken to Colorado – and that the poaching of three wolves in Klamath County late last year dropped the…
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More Details On 2024 Puget Sound, Columbia, Ocean Salmon Fisheries
Following on yesterday’s announcement of tentative 2024 ocean fisheries, here are more details on what seasons Columbia and Puget Sound summer and fall salmon anglers can expect.
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Latest USGS Migrations Maps Feature Several WA, OR Deer, Elk Herds
New mapping out from the U.S. Geological Survey today is spotlighting how heavily a Central Washington mule deer herd uses a migratory corridor intersecting with busy US 97 over Blewett Pass.
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West Coast Ocean Salmon Managers Set Tentative 2024 Seasons
West Coast ocean salmon seasons were tentatively set this afternoon in Seattle, and there’s good news for some fishermen and not so good news for others.
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Willamette Winter Steelhead Run Comes In At 20-year High
Following on the heels of a record run of coho past Willamette Falls last fall is a best-in-two-decades return of winter steelhead, a continuation of a remarkable turnaround for a stock that was in dire straits not so long ago.
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SW WA, Lower Columbia Fishing Report (4-9-24)
Early April 2024 spring Chinook and steelhead catch stats for the Lower Columbia and select Southwest Washington tributaries.
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Lower Columbia Springer Season Extended 2 More Days
Columbia River salmon managers extended the spring Chinook season through Thursday, April 11, state managers announced this morning.
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2024 Puget Sound Spot Shrimp Season Set
The highly anticipated spot shrimp season will begin as early as May 16 in many of Washington’s inside waters, WDFW announced late this afternoon.
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Possible New World Record *Checks Notes* Monkeyface Prickleback Landed By OR Angler
Tillamook angler Rebecca Jones’ 4.8-pound monkeyface prickleback, caught near Garibaldi on April 1, could be a new world record, topping one caught in Yaquina Bay in 2008, ODFW reports.
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4 More Days For Lower Columbia Springers
Lower Columbia spring Chinook managers extended the sport fishery below Bonneville Dam four more days through Tuesday, April 9, as ODFW and WDFW staffers had recommended yesterday, and will be watching whether more time might be added.
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Lower Columbia Springer Managers To Mull 4-day Extension
Lower Columbia salmon managers will mull a four-day extension of spring Chinook season below Bonneville Dam when they meet tomorrow morning.
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Hatchery Truck Crash Kills 25,500-plus NE OR Springer Smolts; Many Escape Into Creek
ODFW reports that a hatchery truck carrying 102,000 spring Chinook smolts meant to be released into the Imnaha River crashed on the way instead, killing 25,529, but 77,000 survived and made it into Lookingglass Creek and are expected to boost adult returns there in a couple years. The driver suffered minor injuries.
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SW WA, Lower Columbia Fishing Report (4-2-24)
Late March 2024 spring Chinook and steelhead catch stats for the Lower Columbia and select Southwest Washington tributaries.
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Feds Complete Status Reviews Of Oregon Coast, NorCal Chinook Populations
Federal salmon overseers say Oregon Coast Chinook face a low risk of extinction, according to a recently concluded deep dive into the health of runs stretching from the Necanicum in the north to the Elk and Sixes in the south.
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The Most OVERLOOKED Way to Properly Manage Your Hunting Property for FREE
Using fire to manage land is a technique dating back to when Native Americans freely roamedour lands..
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New Joint-agency Work Group Formed Around Walleye, Nonnatives In Snake, Columbia
Another clear warning about walleye expansion up the Snake has been issued by Idaho salmon and steelhead managers, who also unveiled a new focus on addressing nonnative species in that river and the Columbia.
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Willamette Summer Steelhead Production On Federal Chopping Block
Oregon sportfishing organizations are raising the alarm about “shocking” budget cuts to Willamette Valley salmon and steelhead hatchery programs by the Army Corps of Engineers, including a complete defunding of summer-run production.
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Unlicensed Lower Columbia Guide, Partner Fined, Lose Fishing Privileges For 3 Years
ODFW reports on the case of an unlicensed fishing guide and his partner who were caught in September 2021 and sentenced last fall.
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Comment Opens On Introducing Bull Trout To Northeast Washington’s Sullivan Lake
State, tribal and federal managers will hold a mid-April meeting on their plan to place bull trout, a native char, in Sullivan Lake in far northern Pend Oreille County. They say it wouldn’t affect activities on the lake, but may lead to seasonal closures of Harvey Creek to protect spawning and rearing fish, similar to…
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SW WA, Lower Columbia Fishing Report (3-27-24)
Late March 2024 spring Chinook and winter steelhead catch stats for select Southwest Washington tributaries and the Lower Columbia River.
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Marine Area 10 Blackmouth Fishery Closes
WDFW announces that blackmouth fishing off Seattle, Bremerton, Shoreline and elsewhere will close as Marine Area 10 encounter limits have been reached. Year-round piers remain open, as does Area 11 to the south.
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Feds Release Final EIS On North Cascades Grizzly Reintro, Want To Go 10(j) Route
Federal agencies are one step closer to reintroducing grizzly bears into Washington’s North Cascades via a nonessential population, or 10(j), designation that would give managers more latitude in dealing with Ursus arctos horribilis conflicts.
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Don’t Overlook Shellfish Ops On Washington’s Inside Beaches
It’s not just all razor clams and Dungeness crabs when it comes to Washington shellfishing – there are good opportunities for steamer clams, oysters and mussels this time of year, thanks to spring daytime low tides and ongoing seasons or the opening of beaches on the state’s inside saltwaters.
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Satellite Tracking Tags To Be Attached To Rogue, Chetco Winter-Run Steelhead
ODFW biologists are putting satellite pop-off tags on 10 Rogue and Chetco adult winter steelhead after they’ve spawned to track them for 180 days on their journey back out into the Pacific.
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ODFW Disposes Of 160,000 Trout After New Parasite Found In Fish Raised At 3 Hatcheries
ODFW reports it has disposed of about 160,000 8- to 10-inch rainbows that were being raised at Klamath Falls, Rock Creek and Elk River hatcheries to stop the spread of a new parasite; loss will be backfilled with 104,000 surplus trout.
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SW WA, Lower Columbia Fishing Report (3-18-24)
Mid-March 2024 winter steelhead, spring Chinook and walleye catch stats for the Lower Columbia and select Southwest Washington tributaries.
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Washington Game Commission Kicks Cougar Rulemaking Can Again
Washington’s Fish and Wildlife Commission today again did not reach a decision on moving forward on cougar rulemaking that could be implemented as soon as this hunting season, kicking the can down the road – but only a few short weeks.
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Ominous Catches During Lake Washington Gillnetting
WDFW crews report potentially worrisome catches on southern Lake Washington this week: a small northern pike, and salmon fry in the belly of American shad.
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Washington Fish And Wildlife Commission To Talk Cougar Science, Rulemaking Today
Petitions, public comment, the director’s report, and cougar science and hunting rules. That’s the meat of today’s Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission agenda.
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$1.5 Million More For Columbia Sea Lion Control Nixed In Final Washington Budget
Funding for Washington sea lion culling on the Lower Columbia will continue for at least another year, but a chance to triple that spending in the coming fiscal year to save ESA-listed salmon and steelhead was lethally removed from the recently passed state budget.
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WDFW Talks Area 10-11 Chinook Proposal, Snohomish Wild Kings With Anglers
Washington salmon managers this morning rolled out a proposed new way to manage summer Chinook seasons off Seattle and Tacoma to try and avoid the early shutdowns and interrupted fisheries that deeply frustrated anglers last year.
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Sturgeon Retention On John Day Pool To Close After Thursday’s Fishing
March 14 will be the last opportunity to keep a sturgeon on the John Day Pool, Columbia River managers decided this morning after learning the quota is projected to reach 94 percent full after Thursday’s fishing.
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SW WA, Lower Columbia Fishing Report (3-13-24)
March 4-10, 2024 winter steelhead and spring Chinook catch stats for the Lower Columbia and select Southwest Washington tributaries.