Steelhead Trout Club of Washington Contributes to Acoustic Monitoring of Migrating Steelhead

A Joint Venture Between Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife, Steelhead Trout Club of Washington, Squaxin Tribe, Puyallup Tribe, Muckleshoot Tribe, the Gordon & Betty Moore Foundation, and US Army Corp of Engineers

SEATTLE - The Steelhead Trout Club of Washington has expended $15,000 and other resources for a study that will:

Develop an understanding on where hatchery and wild steelhead smolts go after leaving the Green river in Puget Sound.

Begin to identify limiting factors to the survival of wild and hatchery steelhead smolts within Puget Sound waters.

Develop key professional interagency and organizational contacts/cooperation within Puget Sound to share information and possibly continue similar work elsewhere within the region.

The Steelhead Trout Club of Washington has purchased tiny pill-sized acoustic tags which have been attached by Washington Department of Wildlife personnel to both hatchery and wild Steelhead smolt migrating to Puget Sound. By tracking their movement via sensors installed by the US Army Corps of Engineers and the Pacific Ocean Shelf Tracking Program we will learn about the life history and mortality of Steelhead in Puget Sound. With this information we will promote the appropriate conservation methods needed to enhance Steelhead survival.

Complementary programs to track Steelhead supported by other organizations have now followed the Green river program. These systems include the Puyallup River sponsored by the Puyallup Tribe, U.S. Army Corp of Engineers, and Pacific Ocean Shelf Tracking (POST); the Nisqually River sponsored by the Squaxin Tribe and POST; the Skagit River sponsored by the City of Seattle, Wild Steelhead Coalition, and POST; and Hood Canal sponsored by NOAA, Long live the Kings, and POST. It is anticipated that these efforts in other Puget Sound rivers systems will have a synergetic effect to the Steelhead Trout Clubs work to understand and enhance the Steelhead

Founded in 1928, The Steelhead Trout Club is the oldest active outdoor sports club in the state. We have been active in steelhead issues for over 75 years. We have been active in many enhancement and conservation activities that have benefited the steelhead resource of our State. We have grown on the efforts of many dedicated and talented individuals and have leveraged our strength as an organization to ensure sports fishing opportunities for all of Washington’s citizens.

For more information, please contact Hal Boynton at (253) 833-3269 or Russ Simonson at (206) 396-2081.

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