Nimbus Fish Hatchery??? Spawning?

[steel2theReel]

Hi.

I ran by the Nimbus hatchery today to see if the Salmon had really reached there yet.

Not many Salmon, but the weirs were in and the ladder is shut down.

I saw a note abut the ladders being turned off until March 2015.

What decisions have been made public about spawning Salmon and Steelhead this year?

Have the Powers That Be made the decision to not spawn because of lack of water this year? It figures that the state that could sell enough of Nor Cal water to turn this into a desert would, of course, use this as political leverage with the environmentalists to get more money out of our pockets and into the money machine.

I probably missed something, but I'd like to find out.

Thanks,

Grant Fraser

[winxp_man]

I don't know if the ladder is open this early. But if they do no open it man this will be interesting to see.

[SeanO]

I saw a note abut the ladders being turned off until March 2015.

I hope that is a typo, misprint, or something similar!

They produce 13 million chinook smolts there; it's a huge hatchery for salmon production in California along with the Feather river hatchery and Coleman on the Sac.

[STEELIES/26c3]

The plight of the hatchery and returning salmon and steelhead will be determined by mother nature.

This summer, the entire hatchery (including Nimbus and American River Hatcheries) were completely emptied. That included salmon and steelhead smolts, as well as catchable rainbows and brooding stock.

Normally, steelhead smolts raised at Nimbus... are released as yearlings in February, at Howe Ave, the following year.

This year, they were released as fry, because the water was too warm to continue raising them in the races at the hatchery.

Because Folsom Lake is extremely low (as are ALL California reservoirs) the water leaving the spillway is much warmer than usual and since that same water is the water used to sustain hatchery resident fish stocks, it was deemed that the water would be too warm and the oxygen content insufficient thus ALL FISH were released from ALL races (holding pens) in to either the American River or various urban, mountain lakes/reservoirs.

Normally, since Lake Folsom is a bottom-draw reservoir, the water discharged from it in to the river is cold enough for the fish as it is sucked out of the deeper, cooler water column.

Unfortunately, Folsom is at a mere 36% of its roughly one million acre-feet capacity and as such... what little volume of water is being released, is running 3-6 degrees higher than its normal temperature for this time of year.

Uncertain if we will get a wet fall/winter or continue to remain in this now 3.5 year drought... biologists are not counting on spawning/raising salmon and steelhead stocks for 2014-2015.

That is at least my understanding.

Typically, the ladder would not be operative for the uptake of spawing salmon until late October/November anyway so it is way too early to tell.

I imagine if we have a really wet fall and both ambient and water temperatures drop significantly in the next few weeks, then BOR and CDFW will attempt to spawn chinook salmon this fall.

If we remain in a drought, I would not be surprised to see the ladder remain dry and a river closure be placed in effect by CDFW as it was this winter past.

Dance for Rain~

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

Lower American River salmon run is later than the Sacramento or Feather Rivers.

They should be spawning in November.

[SeanO]

Good info, STEELIES/26c3, thanks for that (I guess!).

Best,

[steel2theReel]

Thanks.

To clarify, the sign posted in front of the parking lot said that the ladders would be dry from Jun 2014 to March 2015.

So this seems to support your previous statement, 26c3.

Regards,

Grant

[STEELIES/26c3]

Yah I kinda thought that but I guess I was reserving some optimism~;(

Still, if we get early and consistent rain, coupled with increased inundation of spawning gravel restoration areas... it is plausible/possible that our natural-spawn, Chinook stocks will at least SOME-what offset the lack of mitigate salmon the hatchery would have produced for the year 2014/15.

My concern is that BOR sees this as an opportunity (in conjunction with CDFW) to suggest that the American River hatcheries are no longer necessary.

I say this because the carrrying capacity and hence steelhead and salmon stocks the American River can NATURALLY sustain (even with the spawning restoration areas) is simply not enough and too, little too late.

If there was the possibility of the American River becoming a naturally-sustained population of 'wild' or 'native' fish without the hatchery, I would be all for it. However, that possibility disappeared with the creation of the dams in 1959 and continues to further disappear with the increased pressure by agribusiness and politicians to sell OUR water by the cubic foot per second to municipalities and worse yet... to water brokers like Stewart Resnick~:(

Insert quote by Chief Seattle regarding 'ownership of the earth ( :~><)))><~: )

[Mr.Matt]

If they do not plan to use the ladders until 3015 why would they place the weir in this year?
Especially with all of that new "spawning" bed area they constructed above!

That doesn't make any sense at all.

[Darian]

"....3015...." Typo??? ;) Maybe DFW doesn't intend to use the spawning gravels above Hazel Avenue this year or any drought year....

[ycflyfisher]

I'm pretty certain Nimbus is a mitigation facility and the willful abandonment of hatchery production is not an option. I'd expect them to spawn anadromous salmonids regardless -rain or no rain. If they willing decide to not spawn salmon they're definitely by default, electing to spawn Notices of Intent at record rates. That's simply not going to happen IMO.

[SeanO]

Pretty much my thoughts as well.


I'm pretty certain Nimbus is a mitigation facility and the willful abandonment of hatchery production is not an option. I'd expect them to spawn anadromous salmonids regardless -rain or no rain. If they willing decide to not spawn salmon they're definitely by default, electing to spawn Notices of Intent at record rates. That's simply not going to happen IMO.

[steel2theReel]

Pretty much my thoughts as well.

Well. I for one would like to know how they will spawn fish in a dry hatchery!

Grant

[STEELIES/26c3]

If they do not plan to use the ladders until 3015 why would they place the weir in this year?
Especially with all of that new "spawning" bed area they constructed above!

That doesn't make any sense at all.

It makes sense if you consider; The basin, as it is the end of the line, accumulates the greatest amount of salmon and anglers.

If the weir were not installed, a large percentage of fish which otherwise would spawn in the other 5 spawning restoration areas along the river between Arden/Goethe and Sailor Bar, would instead go in to the basin and be caught (many before becoming ripe enough to spawn) and that would reduce the amount of in-river spawning and ultimately the number of offspring produced.

[Darian]

Yep,.... I'm aware of the mitigation status of the hatchery but there has to be an explanation for putting the weir in place when there's no flow thru the ladder/hatchery. Since staff out there have always been open to questions in the past, probably should just call them and ask....

[STEELIES/26c3]

The hatchery normally produces considerably more salmon smolts than the entire American River. Since there are 6 spawning habitat restoration areas on the river and only one above the weir, it makes perfect sense to install the weir as it isolates only one area (Nimbus Basin) and encourages fish to utilize the remaining 5 areas below the weir.

Since the hatchery will likely not produce any offspring, it is sensible and practical to prevent salmon from kegging up in the basin as that is their natural migration tendency.

The concept of carrying capacity dictates that even if the 6 restoration areas were never created, the odds of successful spawning would be much greater in 12 miles of the upper American River BELOW the weir than in the 200 yards above it...

Ecology 101