For the first time in over fifty years, these salmon can also access the upper watershed. Former barriers at the BART weir and inflatable bladder dams are now passable by fish due to newly constructed fish ladders by the Alameda County Water District and Alameda County Flood Control District.
This incredible opportunity for salmonids to migrate throughout the Alameda Creek watershed is the product of decades of hard work to improve fish passage by a myriad of partners in the longstanding Alameda Creek Fisheries Work Group, including the Alameda County Water District (ACWD) and Alameda County Flood Control District, Alameda Creek Alliance (ACA), California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW), San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC), Zone 7 Water District, Alameda County Resource Conservation District, Trout Unlimited and the National Marine Fisheries Service, among others.
Alameda Creek is the largest local tributary to San Francisco Bay. To better understand how fish populations will use and move through the newly connected creek, volunteers will monitor and observe fish and spawning beds throughout different stretches over the next few months. This monitoring work is crucial to inform historical habitat recolonization by Chinook salmon and steelhead, to inform future restoration efforts, and to deter poachers.
On December 12, 2022, Alameda Creek Alliance (ACA) volunteers observed salmon using one of the new fish ladders and ACWD confirmed Chinook moving through the fishway. CalTrout is proud to partner with ACA to build out and lend capacity for the volunteer program including trainings. Learn more about the Alameda Creek volunteer monitoring program here and keep your eyes and ears open over the next couple of months to see or hear about fish spawning in Bay Area streams.
Cover Photo: Chinook salmon in Alameda Creek. Credit: Dan Sarka/Alameda Creek Alliance
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Peter Moyle is the Distinguished Professor Emeritus in the Department of Wildlife, Fish and Conservation Biology and Associate Director of the Center for Watershed Sciences, at UC Davis. He is author or co-author of more than 240 publications, including the definitive Inland Fishes of California (2002). He is co-author of the 2017 book, Floodplains: Processes and Management for Ecosystem Services. His research interests include conservation of aquatic species, habitats, and ecosystems, including salmon; ecology of fishes of the San Francisco Estuary; ecology of California stream fishes; impact of introduced aquatic organisms; and use of floodplains by fish.
Robert Lusardi is the California Trout/UC Davis Wild and Coldwater Fish Researcher focused on establishing the basis for long-term science specific to California Trout’s wild and coldwater fish initiatives. His work bridges the widening gap between academic science and applied conservation policy, ensuring that rapidly developing science informs conservation projects throughout California. Dr. Lusardi resides at the UC Davis Center for Watershed Sciences and works closely with Dr. Peter Moyle on numerous projects to help inform California Trout conservation policy. His recent research interests include Coho salmon on the Shasta River, the ecology of volcanic spring-fed rivers, inland trout conservation and management, and policy implications of trap and haul programs for anadromous fishes in California.
Patrick Samuel is the Conservation Program Coordinator for California Trout, a position he has held for almost two years, where he coordinates special research projects for California Trout, including the State of the Salmonids report. Prior to joining CalTrout, he worked with the Fisheries Leadership & Sustainability Forum, a non-profit that supports the eight federal regional fishery management councils around the country. Patrick got his start in fisheries as an undergraduate intern with NOAA Fisheries Protected Resources Division in Sacramento, and in his first field job as a crew member of the California Department of Fish & Wildlife’s Wild and Heritage Trout Program.