Spring in the Upper Salmon is officially here & that means the trees are leafing out, pastures are greening up & the steelhead are returning to spawn. Those first two signs of spring are universal, regardless of where you live, but the last one, spawning steelhead, is a bit more unique. Most everyone has heard of the rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss, a trout species & member of the salmonid family native to the cold water tributaries of the Pacific Ocean here in North America. What makes this species unique is that individuals develop differently depending upon their environment. While all of the individuals hatch in the same in the same environment, some will remain in fresh water while others will migrate to the ocean. Those that remain in fresh water are the ubiquitous rainbow trout, while the andromous (or ocean going) individuals become known as steelhead. The steelhead generally develop a slimmer profile, becoming more silvery in color & growing much larger than the freshwater rainbow trout.
The adult steelhead migrate from their ocean habitat to the freshwater streams & rivers of their birth to spawn, or give birth to the next generation. Now you may have noticed that we’re landlocked here in Salmon & that the ocean is a heck of a long way away, but somehow, the steelhead that are born here, know how to find their way back here. Pretty impressive, huh? The adult females will search out the perfect habitat with the correct gravel composition, water depth & velocity to build a redd, or nesting area, where she lays her eggs. One of the favorite areas for steelhead to spawn are side channels off the river where the water is shallower & slower moving & we have steelhead doing just that locally right now. How do we know that? Because one of our awesome partners at Trout Unlimited, Matt Green, was kind enough to share some photos from a side channel off the Salmon River near our Cole Ranch conservation easement with us. Check them out below!
Ag Week 2015