Now is the best time to view salmon in your local rivers!
In the Bay Area, adult salmon have returned to the Lagunitas Creek watershed after recent rains. Stream flows are now high enough to allow salmon to migrate through Lagunitas Creek and into tributaries such as San Geronimo Creek and Devil’s Gulch. This is a good time to look for coho salmon jumping at the Inkwells, where San Geronimo Creek flows into Lagunitas Creek.
The main attraction (due to the fishes’ relative abundance and bright colors) is the coho salmon run, which should be getting underway right now. Over the next few days, coho salmon will hopefully be visible migrating, jumping, fighting, and spawning throughout the watershed.
We hope you get a chance to go outside and see these resilient fish in your local river! Take a photo and tag us and we’ll feature it!
Check out this map to find the best places near you to view salmon spawning.
Read the full article from the Marin Independent Journal to learn more.
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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.