Southern steelhead are among the rarest fish in California. But if you ask Elizabeth Burns, CalTrout’s Southern California Project Manager and leader of the Southern Steelhead Coalition, what she wants people to take away from this year’s Southern Steelhead Symposium, her answer is hopeful: “Southern steelhead aren’t extinct. They are here and we can do something about it.”
That message filled the room this year. More than 130 scientists, agency staff, Tribal members, advocates, and anglers gathered to share what’s working, wrestle with what isn’t, and figure out how to keep the momentum going for one of the state’s most resilient fish.
A coalition as wide as the species’ range
Attendees came from across the entire Southern California steelhead DPS (distinct population segment), and from nearly every corner of the work to save it. Federal and state agencies were there, including NOAA Fisheries, CDFW, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, California State Parks, the State Coastal Conservancy, the California Conservation Corps, and the State Water Board. So were local water districts, the Ventura and Santa Monica Mountains resource conservation districts, and Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton.
Tribal members joined from the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians, other Chumash bands, and Tribal representatives of the Owens Valley Water Commission. Conservation groups including The Nature Conservancy, Trout Unlimited, TreePeople, Creeklands, and local land trusts sat alongside representatives from the cities of Ventura and Santa Barbara, Ventura County, Orange County Public Works, and the California State Senate. Researchers from UC Berkeley, UC Santa Cruz, UC Santa Barbara, and the CSU system rounded out the room, along with fly fishers, consultants, and tech partners like Blue Robotics.
Bigger, broader, and built on returning partners
Last year’s symposium drew just over 80 people. This year, attendance jumped past 130. About 62% of attendees were returning participants and 38% were new, a sign that people are finding the gathering useful to their work.
The lineup of presenters and speakers grew too. This year’s speakers and talks represented the whole DPS, and the theme was growth: how partners can stay focused, expand their efforts, and unite for better outcomes for the fish. The end of the rounded up with a poster session exhibiting research, restoration, and conservation efforts across California.
Highlights from the program
Stories of our water. The symposium opened with a tribal panel, š(h)aqutina’niš hi ki’yo’: stories of our water. Panelists spoke about how agencies, nonprofits, and researchers can become better collaborators with Tribal communities, setting the tone for everything that followed.
Restoring Santa Barbara’s creeks. The City of Santa Barbara shared updates on its creek and river restoration work, which is designed to serve both flood control and steelhead habitat.
Recovery after the Palisades Fire. The Resource Conservation District of the Santa Monica Mountains presented research updates on its restoration efforts, including how the work has progressed since the Palisades Fire. Nate Yancheff, CalTrout’s South Coast Project Manager, also shared a model of the Trabuco Creek restoration project that caught many attendees’ attention.
New fish counts. The Cachuma Operation and Maintenance Board presented fish count data, one of the most anticipated updates of the day. In the final panel, attendees were especially drawn to a comparison of the largest fish monitored against an overview of all the fish tracked this past year.
Hopeful, and bracing for the rain
The energy in the room was excited, but it carried the complexity that Southern steelhead advocates know well. “Southern steelhead are a very rare species and most of the time the questions about Southern steelhead don’t have answers,” Burns said. “The symposium provided a lot of information about the species but also created more questions.”
Stories of strong partnerships lifted the room early on. As the day went on, the mood turned more contemplative, with conversations about next steps, climate change, and an uncertain funding landscape.
Attitudes of hope radiated throughout the event. Last winter’s rain brought an uptick in Southern steelhead sightings this year, and the coming wet season could do the same. But a strong El Niño could also damage restoration projects and harm the fish. In Burns’s words, everyone is hopeful but bracing for the upcoming rain.
It is clear that everyone has the same passion for steelhead but also for the greater good of California’s creatures and ecosystems. Groups and individuals from all over and of different backgrounds collaborated … to discuss what can be done to bring back the steelhead but also make it feel like a much smaller feat.
Kate Tidwell/CalTrout’s Southern California Development Officer
Kavi Deo, CalTrout’s Annual Fund Manager, was struck by the mix of people learning from each other. “It was great seeing people from all over SoCal sharing their experiences,” Deo said, “and particularly cool to have folks with education backgrounds talk with policy and legal advocates, and younger people learn more about the wider scientific community.”
Behind the scenes
For Burns, this year’s symposium came together with unusual ease. The moment that meant the most to her was the opening Tribal panel, which was organized entirely by the Southern Steelhead Coalition’s Tribal Liaison, Casmali Lopez.
“That felt like true collaboration and fulfilling the mission of the coalition,” Burns said.
The Nature Conservancy sponsored lunch for attendees.
What’s next
The symposium reflects how CalTrout approaches Southern steelhead recovery: by working with a broad spectrum of partners to get restoration done on the ground. Keeping that coalition growing, and keeping current projects moving, will matter more than ever as the region heads into what could be a pivotal wet season.
Missed the event, or want to revisit a talk? The full symposium will be posted on the Southern Steelhead Coalition YouTube channel. Subscribe to catch the archive when it goes live.
Southern steelhead are still here. And with this many people in their corner, there’s a lot we can do for them.
