Transcript Steelhead 101

Steelhead 101
A trout by any other name…
Donald Ratcliff
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
[email protected]
Steelhead Characteristics
Steelhead are:
1. A member of the Pacific salmon and trout
family
2. The same species as ‘rainbow trout’
3. Widespread in distribution, but limited in
population size in many areas
4. Anadromous
What Is Anadromy?
Anadromous (adj) – Fish
that migrate into
freshwater environments
from the sea to spawn
(i.e. sea-, or ocean-run
fish)
Challenges to Anadromous
Fishes in the Central Valley
1. Migration – Adults may have trouble
returning to the system and juveniles may
not be able to get out
2. Habitat – Alterations have changed
traditional spawning and rearing habitats
3. Decades of stocking ‘rainbow trout’ in native
steelhead waters
Challenges to Anadromous
Fishes in the Central Valley
4. Non-native predators, competitors, species
that change habitat, species that change
food-webs and productivity
5. Multiple other conditions in the Valley and
beyond