1. Wild Steelhead Stock S t a t u s BC 2006...

2. British Columbia in Perspective 1200 km (720 mi) south to north 500-1000 km (300 – 600 mi) wide 950,000 sq km (367,000 sq mi) 75% mountains; 60% forested; 10% farmland and lakes; <2% rivers 10% farmland and lakes; <2% rivers 7000 km (4200 mi) of coastline

3. Population Details ~4.0Million total ~ 60% Vancouver ~16% Vancouver Island ~24 % elsewhere but only 4% in northern half <4% Aboriginal Most of BC’s steelhead staff are in this room

4. B C (Wild) Steelhead Facts About 580 steelhead “rivers” (3 rd order or larger) About 630 stocks (85% WSH, 12% ISSH, 3% CSSH) (Ahrens = 401 stocks in 21 CUs) About 1/3 of rivers along remote mid & N coast (seldom, if ever, fished) About 1/4 of rivers on Vancouver Island

5. BC Steelhead Stocks

6. Guesstimates of Abundance Circa 2002 Stock Type Number of Stocks < 500 500 - 1000 > 1000 WSH418206 CSSH402(1) ISSH501111 All5593318

7. Abundance (cont’d) Stock Type Abundance Winter Steelhead 225,000 Coastal Summer Steelhead 25,000 Interior Summer Steelhead 90,000 All340,000

8. Hatcheries in Perspective

9. Number of Streams Stocked with Steelhead Juveniles Originating From Wild Brood Stock (F=fry, S=smolt) Time Island Mainland Thompson Cariboo Skeena All Period F S F S F S F S F S F S Time Island Mainland Thompson Cariboo Skeena All Period F S F S F S F S F S F S < 1975 1 3 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 5 < 1975 1 3 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 5 1975–84 11 15 14 8 1 1 2 0 4 1 32 25 1975–84 11 15 14 8 1 1 2 0 4 1 32 25 1985–94 19 17 18 19 1 1 3 0 8 1 49 38 1985–94 19 17 18 19 1 1 3 0 8 1 49 38 1995–01 11 10 6 14 1 0 0 0 0 1 18 25 1995–01 11 10 6 14 1 0 0 0 0 1 18 25 2002-05 8 5 0? 8 0 0 0 0 0 1 8 13 2002-05 8 5 0? 8 0 0 0 0 0 1 8 13

10. Steelhead Releases 1975 - 2001 Steelhead Releases 1975 - 2001 Period Av # Fry Av # Smolts Period Av # Fry Av # Smolts 1975-79.07M.07M 1975-79.07M.07M 1980-84 1.03M.60M 1980-84 1.03M.60M 1985-89 1.59M.91M 1985-89 1.59M.91M 1990-94.73M.82M 1990-94.73M.82M 1995-99.26M.63M 1995-99.26M.63M 2000-05.09M.60M 2000-05.09M.60M

11. Stock Assessment Methods  Total Counts Weirs/resistivity counters (Keogh, Deadman, Sustut, Kitwanga, Kloiya)  Indices of Abundance Gillnet test fisheries (Fraser, Skeena) Fishwheels (Nass) Snorkel observations (some total counts) Aerial Counts (Chilko) Juvenile sampling

13. Nass River Watershed Nass Lake Damdochax Creek Kwinageese River Cranberry River White River Meziadin Lake Bowser Lake Bell-Irving River Kiteen River Grease Harbour Tchitin River New Aiyansh Tseax River Canyon City (Gitwinksihlkw) Greenville (Lakalzap) Ishkeenickh River Kincolith Kincolith River Nass River 50 km N BC

14. Fishwheel Locations Kwinageese River Cranberry River White River Meziadin Lake Kiteen River Grease Harbour Tchitin River New Aiyansh Tseax River Canyon City (Gitwinksihlkw) Greenville (Lakalzap) Ishkeenickh River Kincolith Kincolith River Nass River 50 km N

15. Nass River Fishwheels 6 wheels operated annually Mainly for stock assessment Late May to late September Now operated as the sole in- season salmon indicator for the Nass

18. Nass Steelhead Escapement (1994-2004)

19. Nass Summer Steelhead Escapement Estimates

20. Tyee Test Fishery Location N 0 6 km Porcher Island Kennedy Island Smith Island Digby Island Kaien Island Chatham Sound Prince Rupert Port Edward Ecstall River Khyex River Skeena River Tyee Test Fishery BC

21. Tyee Test Fishing Site SKEENA RIVER Khyex River Highway 16 Port Essignton Lookout Tyee Bank Ecstall River Khyex Bank Tyee Test Fishing Site

23. Tyee Test Fishery

24. Skeena Test Fishery Index 1956-2005

25. Upper Sustut River Watershed Skeena River Birdflat Creek Sustut River Bear Lake Bear River Asitka River Red Creek Johanson Creek Johanson Lake Moosevale Creek Two Lake Creek Sustut Lake Study Area N Scale: Approximately 1:340,000 Weir Location

26. Upper Sustut River Weir

31. Albion Test Fishery

32. Trends in Chilko

33. Deadman Creek Resistivity Counter

34. Trends in Deadman

35. Trends in Bonaparte Fishway Opened

36. Trends in Nicola

37. Note to Bob, recall that these are not reconstructed returns, these are simply the observed spawner returns divided by the predominant brood year abundance.

40. Cheakamus Steelhead Escapement Estimates

41. WILD STEELHEAD RETURNS TO THE KEOGH RIVER 1976 to 2003

42. The capacity for smolts dropped from 7,000 (>10,000 with nutrient addition) to <2000 after 1993. recent increases in smolts can be attributed to WRP. Extreme low flows in 2004 hindered exit for all species. Keogh River Steelhead Smolt counts, 1977 to 2005

43. Smolt-to-adult survival trends 2003 estimate based on partial returns. SAS has dropped from average of 15% to <4% Like wild coho, SAS increased in ‘97 and ‘98, but recently declined based on returns thus far of 2001 smolts

44. Steelhead smolt yield and adult returns at the Keogh River, B.C.

45. Keogh Wild Steelhead (2006 in-season)

51. Good Bad Ugly

52. Conservation Status of BC Steelhead

53. The Cards Socio-Political –Steelhead are more a nuisance than political priority. –Technology is proliferating an illusion of abundance. C&R has been oversold. –Fisheries management = process is the product. Bio-Physical –The “red zone” is creeping north as is the inverse relationship between people/development and fish abundance. –The quantity and quality of habitat is not even stable, let alone increasing. (We aren’t manufacturing any more rivers and the ocean is a hard act to change.) –Fish culture is not the silver bullet, especially in thermally challenged British Columbia.

54. Final Thoughts If we want to stretch out the future of steelhead and steelhead fishing, think quality not quantity Take lots of pictures. These are the good old days.

55. Going…..going………..??????