Adults and Half Pounders Question

**Ryan** · 03-28-2005, 10:49 PM

This is a question I have had for a while, and the more I think about it, the more it bugs me. On the American, there is a half pounder run and an adult run... HP's are 16-22" and Adults are... I'm guessing 23"+? HP's go to the delta, and never get to the ocean... while Adults go out to the salt and that's where they spend the majority of their life. This is the case for the American. Correct?

What is the deal for the Feather? The steelhead average... in my experience... anywhere from 18-22". With the occasional 8-10 pounder hooked and ocasionally caught a couple times each season. And that is during Ocotber/November/December... I have noticed that in the spring, there are alot of fish caught that are in the 18-22" range, but there are even more smaller 12-16" fish in the river... I know those ones have never seen salt or any water other than the Feather. So what my question is... does anyone think that the average 18-22" steelhead on the Feather made it out to the salt, or do you think they chilled in the Delta like the American HP's? So basically, what does everyone consider a HP and an adult on the Feather?

I realize my question is really confusing... but I tried to clarify it as much as possible. I'm interested to hear some oppinions on this topic.

**Adam Grace** · 03-28-2005, 11:54 PM

Ryan, I don't think that your question is confusing.

I have wondered the same thing. The Feather SH are smaller on average than the American River SH. Although the Feather fish are smaller I still believe that they have seen the salt. I could be wrong. Your guess about the Feather fish going as far as the delta has merit. Hopefully there is someone out there who knows more than myself about this topic.

Maybe we should call the Feather SH 3/4 lbers

**smokeater** · 03-29-2005, 01:00 AM

I thought that it had more to do with the gene pool that had been perpetuated in those respective waters. For instance when the hatchery on the American planted steelhead of the Eel River strain (I think), that brought the larger winter fish that we see here. I just thought that other rivers like the Yuba didn't have the benefit of selective breeding.

**Darian** · 03-29-2005, 12:32 PM

Ryan,..... There was some discussion related to this in an earlier post ("Keepers") under this topic that may give some perspective. Not all of it is on point but I think the posts by ycflycaster and covelo about the makeup of American River Half Pounders had some info in them that you might find interesting.....

**chicoflyguy** · 03-29-2005, 10:04 PM

ryan

I fish the feather on a regular basis. I think that a lot of the smaller SH (12") in the spring are fish that have been released recently from the hatchery. On average the Feather has smaller fish in the spring but the fish are generally wild fish that are super hot. In the fall the average fish is bigger than in the spring but they are hatchery fish that do not fight as hard as the smaller spring fish. Either way, any steelhead is a good steelhead, no matter how big or what it is called.

**Bill Kiene semi-retired** · 03-30-2005, 09:50 AM

I heard once a long time ago that the CA DF&G considered any steelhead in the Lower American River under 12 inches to be a pre-migrant.

I think if you can go to the hatcheries and talk with some older people there or the biologist for a river system you can find out the planting history of the river.

I believe that after the dams and hatchery were put on the Lower American River that they used Eel River Steelhead stocks to start the winter run.

Many of us feel the 'Halfpounders' (14"-22") are the original strain of fish that was in the American River before the dams.

In the '70s they had more money for the hatchery system and they did more experimenting then. They got some stocks of summer Steelhead from the Washougal River in Washington state.

I have a call into the Lower Feather River Hatchery right now to get inforamtion regarding their original stocks of steelhead.

**BigBuddha** · 03-30-2005, 01:33 PM

In a recent trip to the Feather we caught 5 half pounders. They were all between 12-16 inches in length. Two were very silver, but the others were had more color, a little darker. Would this indicate that the silver colored ones had been in the salt, and the darker ones had not?

**PatrickM** · 03-30-2005, 02:08 PM

Half-pounders, small adults, resident trout - I'm not picky, I like them all. Hopefully I'm going to chase a few up there this weekend. Any advice on what's been working up there lately?

**Tony Buzolich** · 03-30-2005, 05:31 PM

I have to question the statement Ryan made that the A/R half-pounders only go as far as the delta. If that were the case, would they in fact be steelhead? Secondly, if that was as far as they got, the stripers would desimate the run. A few weeks ago Fish & Game dumped steelhead smolt into the Feather at Boyds Pump and the stripers went crazy. A new Feather River record was caught over 50+pounds. After a while as the smolt worked there way downstream, the striper bite followed the migration and Verona was hot. Now it seems Freeport is the area.

As to color, I fish the Feather a lot and have caught different color phases of "steelhead" throughout the year. Some of these I'm sure are resident trout that are in fact bigger than some of the juvenile steelhead.

Without actually taking a scale sample and counting the rings and color changes of the scale, there is no way to determine if what is caught is actually a "steelhead" or a trout.
TONY