Summary
Washington's State Fish in Danger of Extinction
Steelhead, Washington's State Fish, have been on the decline for over a century. One hundred years ago, steelhead returns to the Puget Sound region ranged from 325,000 to 800,000 annually. Today, the number has declined to roughly 13,000. Five distinct population segments of Washington steelhead, including Puget Sound/Hood Canal steelhead, are now listed as threatened under the federal Endangered Species Act.
Testing the Efficacy of Hatchery-Rearing Wild Steelhead to Recover a Threatened Population
Current hatchery practices have been identified as a contributing factor to the decline of wild steelhead and salmon, and yet artificial propagation is looked to as one tool for recovering wild populations. To address this paradox, Long Live the Kings partnered with NOAA and others to establish the Hood Canal Steelhead Project. The project is a first-of-its-kind experimental study to assess the effects and effectiveness of supplementation when utilizing low-impact, innovative wild steelhead supplementation techniques in streams throughout the Hood Canal basin, where sufficient habitat exists to support much larger wild steelhead populations than currently survive.
Download the Hood Canal Steelhead Project Brochure
A Multi-Agency Partnership for Steelhead Recovery
Under the direction of NOAA researcher, Dr. Barry Berejikian, the Hood Canal Steelhead Project represents a significant collaboration between NOAA Fisheries, Native American tribes, State and Federal agencies, community groups, and non-profits, and includes the participation of many watershed-level volunteers. Over 40 individuals from 9 collaborating organizations are involved in the project.
