CDFW News

California Reports Progress in Supporting Healthy Salmon Populations and Habitat

Wed, 26 Mar 2025 11:11:02 GMT

SACRAMENTO - The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) announced today the release of the California Salmon Strategy for a Hotter, Drier Future: Progress Report, developed in partnership with the California Natural Resources Agency (CNRA) with support from the Department of Water Resources (DWR) and the State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB).

The Progress Report follows the release of the California Salmon Strategy for a Hotter, Drier Future, released in January 2024. California’s salmon populations are struggling to recover from years of drought, climate disruption, and other environmental and human-made challenges. Thriving salmon populations support healthy waterways, habitats, and species, as well as a multi-million dollar fishing economy and the subsistence of California Native American tribes. The actions outlined in the report lay the groundwork for California to restore and rebuild salmon populations, improve salmon habitat, and utilize the best available science and management practices to prepare for the future.

“California salmon are vital to our environment, our economy, and our cultural heritage,” said California Natural Resources Agency Secretary Wade Crowfoot. “Yet today, these iconic fish are imperiled by climate change and other stressors. We established the Salmon Strategy to chart needed actions to address these challenges and recover salmon fisheries. I’m encouraged by this update and our progress over the last year, with much more hard work ahead.”

The progress report provides an update on the status of 71 action items outlined in the 2024 Salmon Strategy. These action items provide concrete opportunities for the state to make accountable progress across the six key initiatives outlined in the Salmon Strategy to help improve salmon migration, spawning and hatcheries; restore and expand habitat and climate adaptability; and protect water flows and quality.

Of the 71 action items outlined in the Progress Report, roughly 67% of the projects are actively in development. Another 26% have already been fully completed. Only 7% of the action items are in the early, preliminary stages. This progress has been completed over the past year through a partnership of California’s departments and boards, tribal partners, and non-governmental groups committed to supporting healthy salmon populations.

“California’s progress on these key action items shows the state is taking salmon extraordinarily seriously, and that we will use every tool at our disposal to create resilient and thriving salmon populations,” said CDFW Director Charlton Bonham. “I’m focused on ensuring California has healthy salmon populations decades into the future. Today’s Progress Report is a celebration of what’s been done, and a roadmap for where we need to go.”

Key action items that have been completed or have seen significant progress over the past year include:

Removing Outdated Dams: Removal of the Klamath dams, allowing for natural river flow and the presence of fall-run Chinook salmon north of the former dams for the first time in more than a century
Improving Migration Statewide: Planning and development of fish passage improvement locations across the state to support successful salmon migration. Examples include DWR’s Big Notch Project in Yolo County, which will help improve access for salmon and other species through the Yolo Bypass
Building Healthy Habitats: Advancing the Salmon Habitat Restoration Prioritization Initiative (SHaRP), a collaborative effort between CDFW and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Fisheries to identify, find, and implement key restoration efforts to support salmon. Action plans have been developed and more than $30 million has been allocated for habitat projects across the state. Other recently completed projects, including DWR’s Lookout Slough Tidal Habitat Restoration and Flood Improvement Project, have added thousands of acres of beneficial habitat for salmon in California
Supporting Healthy Flows: Developing a robust scientific basis to evaluate minimum flows for the Scott and Shasta Rivers
Implementing New Technology: Utilizing new technologies to monitor and track salmon, including the development of a Parental-Based Tagging monitoring plan, which allows CDFW to use DNA to more accurately track and monitor fish
Cross-Collaboration: Developing and strengthening new partnerships to allow for vital research and increased collaboration to ensure salmon’s survival

To download the report, visit: https://nrm.dfg.ca.gov/FileHandler.ashx?DocumentID=231003

Media Contact:

Katie Talbot, CDFW Communications, 916-204-1381

###

Beavers are Back on Tule River Tribe Lands in the Southern Sierra Nevada

Fri, 21 Jun 2024 13:42:13 GMT

Media Note: A link to download photos and video of the beaver release is available here.

After years of work by the Tule River Tribe, a family of seven beavers has been released into the South Fork Tule River watershed on the Tule River Indian Reservation as part of a multi-year beaver reintroduction effort done in partnership with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW).

Beavers play a critical role in the ecology and stewardship of the land. They build dams that retain water on the landscape, extending seasonal flows, increasing summer baseflows, improving drought and wildfire resilience and better conserving the Tribe’s drinking water supply, of which about 80% comes from the Tule River watershed.

CDFW wildlife biologists also expect to eventually see better habitat conditions for a number of endangered amphibian and riparian-obligate bird species, including foothill and southern mountain yellow-legged frogs, western pond turtle, least Bell’s vireo and southwestern willow flycatcher.

“We’ve been through numerous droughts over the years. Going through these droughts we were wondering how we can conserve, save water, get water here on our lands,” said Kenneth McDarment, a Tule River Tribe member and past tribal councilman. “The answer was in our pictographs.”

Estimated to be between 500 and 1,000 years old, beaver pictographs can be seen at Painted Rock next to the South Fork Tule River on the 55,356-acre reservation. Tribal elders recall beavers being present in the high elevation meadows when they were young, but prior to this release, beavers have not been present on the reservation for decades.

“We can make our future different from our past,” said CDFW Director Charlton H. Bonham. “Our past is one where we treated these animals and others as varmints, as nuisances, and our culture over time ran them off the landscape. That can’t be our future.”

Ten years ago, tribal leaders set a course to bring beavers back to the Tule River watershed, and through research, advocacy, and the state’s pursuit of nature-based solutions, CDFW received state funding to launch its Beaver Restoration Program in 2022. The program created a pathway for the Tribe to reintroduce beavers into their river waters, supporting efforts to ready sites to receive the beavers.

The program partners with tribes, non-governmental organizations, private landowners and other state, federal and local agencies to implement beaver restoration projects.

Before the beavers’ arrival, Tule River Tribe spiritual leader JR Manuel performed a blessing and was joined by Anthony Hunter of the Tachi Yokut Tribe and Elder Robert Gomez, chairman of the Tubatulabal Tribe.

“I’m very happy to see (the beavers) come home and it’s going to be wonderful to watch them do their thing,” said McDarment. “People will be educated even more by seeing the work that they do and the benefits they bring to the environment. My hope is to have the beaver throughout the reservation and all the watershed that we have.”

The initial June 12 release included three adult beavers, one subadult and three babies, or “kits.” Two additional beavers were released into Miner Creek on the Tule River Reservation June 17 and more will be reintroduced in coming months and years to reestablish a genetically diverse population in the watershed.

CDFW wildlife biologists remained on site in the days following the release to monitor the beavers’ behavior. According to the latest report from the field team, the family group has remained together at the release site on Eagle Creek.

Organizations also supporting the Tule River Tribe in its beaver restoration efforts include the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Tulalip Tribes Beaver Project, U.S. Forest Service (Sequioa National Forest and South Pacific Research Station), the Occidental Arts and Ecology Center, Swift Water Design and Acorn Environmental.

###

Media Contacts:
Krysten Kellum, CDFW Communications, (916) 825-7120
Roselynn Lwenya, Tule River Tribe (559) 853-6163

Feather River Fish Hatchery to Increase Production of Fall-Run Chinook Salmon to Combat Impacts of Drought, Thiamine Deficiency

Fri, 16 Dec 2022 09:43:15 GMT

** Joint News Release Issued by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife and the California Department of Water Resources **

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) and the California Department of Water Resources (DWR) have announced that the Feather River Fish Hatchery in Oroville will increase its production of fall-run Chinook salmon in 2023 to approximately 9.5 million fish to combat the impacts of drought and a thiamine deficiency affecting natural spawning and in-river production.

It is the second consecutive year the Feather River Fish Hatchery will exceed its typical production quota of 6 million fall-run Chinook salmon to help sustain California’s commercial and recreational salmon fisheries. The hatchery raised and released 8 million fall-run Chinook salmon smolts in 2022.

The hatchery, which is owned by DWR and operated by CDFW, is seeking to produce approximately 8 million fall-run Chinook salmon smolts and 1.5 million fall-run Chinook salmon fingerlings in 2023 – a 3.5 million increase over typical production goals.

“With the combination of prolonged drought, low adult returns, and a thiamine deficiency impacting in-river production, we feel it’s extremely important to maximize the actions we have available to us in the hatcheries to help sustain this extremely important population of salmon,” said CDFW Fisheries Branch Chief Jay Rowan.

The Feather River Fish Hatchery has collected 17 million fall-run Chinook salmon eggs to help meet these elevated production goals – 2 million more eggs that the hatchery’s typical egg collection target. Approximately 11,000 adult, fall-run Chinook salmon returned to the hatchery in 2022, a significant, below-average return.

Two million of the additional salmon smolts produced will be trucked to release sites in the San Pablo and San Francisco bays to maximize survival. Another 1.5 million of these additional fish will be released into the Feather River earlier in the season and at a smaller size than typical river releases. This is an experimental effort to take advantage of more favorable weather and river conditions in early spring. Twenty-five percent of the fall-run Chinook salmon produced by the Feather River Fish Hatchery in 2023 will be marked and tagged so that scientists can monitor the success of the releases.

“Releasing additional fall-run in both the Feather River and near San Francisco Bay will provide more salmon for harvest opportunities and for research,” said DWR State Water Project Assistant Deputy Director John Yarbrough. “It’s critical that when we change strategies, even during drought, we have the tools in place to understand both the impacts and the benefits of these actions. Continuing to mark these fall-run and follow them throughout their lifecycle will give us the information necessary to inform future actions.”

In the past few years, California’s Chinook salmon populations have suffered from a thiamine deficiency, which is a lack of thiamine or Vitamin B1, which can cause death in both juvenile and adult fish. The thiamine deficiency has been linked to booming anchovy populations in the ocean and adult salmon feeding almost exclusively on anchovies compared to a more diverse diet of prey species.

CDFW and DWR have been able to successfully treat both adult salmon returning to the Feather River Fish Hatchery and the fertilized eggs produced. Until there are changes in the ocean food web, thiamine deficiency will continue to be a problem for these fish. CDFW and DWR will continue to manage the Feather River Fish Hatchery to produce salmon for harvest and conservation using the best available science and management practices.

CDFW photo: A Feather River Fish Hatchery staffer checks on the status of fertilized Chinook salmon eggs incubating within the hatchery.

###

Media Contacts:
Peter Tira, CDFW Communications, (916) 215-3858
Sabrina Washington, DWR Public Affairs, (916) 820-7664

CDFW Announces the Availability of $200 million in New Grant Funding Under Drought, Climate and Nature-Based Solutions Initiatives

Wed, 30 Nov 2022 12:46:32 GMT

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) has announced the availability of over $200 million in new funding for multi-benefit ecosystem restoration and protection projects under Drought, Climate and Nature-Based Solutions Initiatives. This new funding for restoration and protection of critical habitat and watersheds statewide also supports key initiatives including conserving 30 percent of California’s lands and coastal waters by 2030 under California’s 30x30 initiative, Nature-Based Solutions, and increasing the pace and scale of restoration through Cutting the Green Tape.

CDFW has also launched a new online application portal to receive applications for grant funding under these new initiatives. As part of its Cutting the Green Tape efforts, this streamlined application and review process will remain available on an ongoing basis, allowing applicants to submit one application for consideration under multiple funding streams. CDFW is accelerating the review and approval process under this funding with the goal to review and approve the award for grants for selected projects within 30 days of receipt. Following awards, CDFW will work to develop agreements for awarded projects.

“The time to act is right now because California’s ecosystems face dire conditions for our species,” said CDFW Director Charlton H. Bonham. “This funding is absolutely the push we all need to put some largescale projects across the finish line.”

An overview of the new funding available for restoration, including grants, is as follows:

Drought Emergency: Protecting Salmon - $100 million

In response to current drought conditions, the California Legislature authorized $100 million to allow CDFW to protect and restore salmon in 2022 and 2023. This funding will support restoration and protection projects that enhance salmon resiliency to drought and climate change.

CDFW also plans to dedicate $20 million of this funding within the Klamath River Watershed to projects demonstrating support from and collaboration with Tribes and landowner interests. This $20 million will be available as follows:

Up to $10 million available for projects within the Scott River and its tributaries; and
Up to $10 million available for projects within the Shasta River and its tributaries

Nature-Based Solutions

Governor Gavin Newsom’s 2020 Executive Order N-82-20 (PDF) outlines a comprehensive and results-oriented agenda to expand nature-based solutions across California, advancing an approach to restoration that works with and enhances nature to help address societal challenges. Two new programs within CDFW will work toward this goal.

Wetlands and Mountain Meadows Restoration

As part of the Nature-Based Solutions Initiative, up to $54 million is available for projects that restore or enhance wetlands and mountain meadow ecosystems with quantifiable greenhouse gas reduction benefits, consistent with the Natural and Working Lands Climate Smart Strategy (PDF) and Pathways to 30x30. The program will also support pilot projects for CDFW's forthcoming Beaver Restoration Program.

Wildlife Corridors

Up to $42 million under Nature-Based Solutions will be available for CDFW for connectivity planning and implementation projects consistent with the State Wildlife Action Plan, the state’s efforts on connectivity, and the Fish Passage Annual Legislative Report (PDF) or efforts to allow fish and wildlife the freedom to roam in California by accelerating fish and wildlife corridor projects.

Addressing Climate Impacts

Up to $35 million is available to support projects addressing urgent degrading water and habitat conditions due to climate change impacts, including for grants. Eligible uses of these funds include purchasing water from willing sellers to benefit wildlife, protecting instream flows, building water conservation projects, implementing emergency restoration activities and conservation strategies identified in the State Wildlife Action Plan with a priority on actions that protect the Species of Greatest Conservation Need identified in the plan.

CDFW has developed a single set of General Grant Program Guidelines with an overview of eligible project types, priorities and information on the application process, available at wildlife.ca.gov/Conservation/Watersheds/Restoration-Grants/Concept-Application. Applications submitted under these new initiatives may also be considered for further evaluation under CDFW’s Proposition 1 and Proposition 68 Grant Programs, and a separate call for projects will also be released for these programs in early 2023.

More information about these funding opportunities, including guidelines and how to apply, general information about CDFW’s grant programs, as well as a schedule for upcoming grant solicitations, once available, can be found at wildlife.ca.gov/Grants.

Media Contacts:
Matt Wells, CDFW Watershed Restoration Grant Branch, (916) 216-7848
Ken Paglia, CDFW Communications, (916) 825-7120

###

Drought Forces Closure of Shasta Valley Wildlife Area to Waterfowl Hunting; Other Northeastern Waterfowl Properties Impacted by Water Shortages

Fri, 16 Sep 2022 08:42:49 GMT

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) has announced that the Shasta Valley Wildlife Area in Siskiyou County will be closed to waterfowl hunting for the entirety of the 2022-23 season as a result of lost wetlands and waterfowl habitat due to ongoing drought conditions.

The Northeastern Zone waterfowl season runs from October 1, 2022, through January 11, 2023. The Shasta Valley Wildlife Area closure includes the preseason Northeastern Zone Youth Waterfowl Hunting Days scheduled for September 17-18, 2022, and the postseason Veterans and Active Military Personnel Waterfowl Hunting Days scheduled for January 14-15, 2023.

The 4,700-acre Shasta Valley Wildlife Area typically provides important seasonal wetlands for migrating waterfowl supplied by three reservoirs on the property. Two of those reservoirs – Steamboat Lake and Bass Lake – are completely dry and a third reservoir – Trout Lake – is at approximately 25 percent of capacity. Closing the wildlife area to all waterfowl hunting is necessary to protect the waterfowl using what limited habitat remains.

The Shasta Valley Wildlife Area will be open for upland game bird hunting for dove, quail, snipe and pheasant as regulations permit. Pheasant hunting is allowed only on Sundays during the season and will be by reservation only with no walk-ins, sweat line or refills. A Type A Season Pass or Type B Season Pass is required for all non-Junior Hunting License holders. Reservation applications for Sunday pheasant hunts are available at CDFW’s Online License Sales and Services website. Shasta Valley’s annual apprentice pheasant hunt for Junior Hunting License holders will take place Saturday, Nov. 19, 2022. The area will be closed to all hunting Sunday, December 25, 2022, in observance of the Christmas holiday.

Waterfowl hunting opportunities will vary at other Northeastern Zone state and federal lands popular with duck and goose hunters. Hunters are strongly advised to call ahead in preparing for any Northeastern Zone waterfowl hunt. Other popular public waterfowl hunting areas in the Northeastern Zone include:

Ash Creek Wildlife Area
A bright spot among Northeastern Zone public hunting areas, Ash Creek expects its wetlands to be mostly flooded for waterfowl season due to its combination of spring-fed creeks and groundwater supplies. Reservations are required to hunt the opening weekend, October 1-2, along with a Type A or Type B Season Pass for all non-Junior Hunting License holders. Ash Creek also will be open for the preseason Youth Waterfowl Hunting Days on a walk-in basis. No reservations or other check-in procedures required. (530) 294-5824.

Butte Valley Wildlife Area
Butte Valley began pumping groundwater in July to flood its seasonal wetlands in time for the Northeastern Zone waterfowl opener. Butte Valley expects to have 600 or 700 acres flooded by opening day. Reservations are required to hunt opening weekend along with a Type A or Type B Season Pass for all non-Junior Hunting License holders. Butte Valley also will be open for the preseason Youth Waterfowl Hunting Days on a walk-in basis. (530) 398-4627.

Honey Lake Wildlife Area
Another option for youth hunters, the Honey Lake Wildlife Area Fleming Unit will be open for the preseason Youth Waterfowl Hunting Days on a walk-in basis though hunters will find far fewer wetlands than in 2021-22. The Dakin Unit will be dry this upcoming season – though still open to dry field waterfowl hunting and upland game bird hunting. The Fleming Unit will see just about 25 percent of its seasonal wetlands flooded by the October 1 season opener. Reservations are required to hunt opening weekend. A Type A or Type B Season Pass is required of all non-Junior Hunting License holders. (530) 254-6644.

Willow Creek Wildlife Area
This 2,700-acre wildlife area north of Susanville in Lassen County expects 250 acres of huntable, flooded wetlands by the Northeastern Zone season opener Oct. 1. Reservations are required to hunt opening weekend. A Type A or Type B Season Pass is required of all non-Junior Hunting License holders. No preseason youth hunt will take place. (530) 254-6644.

Modoc National Wildlife Refuge
Water conditions have improved at the Modoc National Wildlife Refuge outside of Alturas and the refuge will once again welcome youth waterfowl hunters Sept. 17-18 after having to cancel its youth hunt last season. The youth waterfowl hunt at Modoc is only open to reservation holders. The refuge’s Northeastern Zone general season opener is also on schedule but with a reduced quota of 50 hunters for opening weekend. Opening weekend Oct. 1-2, like the youth shoot before it, is only open to reservation holders. After opening weekend, Modoc is open to waterfowl hunting on a walk-in, self-registration basis. Shoot days are Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. (530) 233-3572.

Klamath Basin National Wildlife Refuge Complex
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) has announced that the Tule Lake and Lower Klamath National Wildlife Refuges will be closed to all public upland game bird and waterfowl hunting during the fall and winter 2022-23 hunting seasons. Beginning September 17, 2022, and continuing through March 10, 2023, the closure applies to all upland game bird seasons, the entirety of the Northeastern Zone waterfowl season, and special group waterfowl hunts, including youth, veterans and women’s hunts, and late-season duck and goose hunts. The decision to close the hunt season was based on the ongoing and severe drought conditions and the lack of available habitat, including food, water and shelter to support upland game birds and migratory water birds. For more information, please call the USFWS Hunter Hotline at (458) 232-6123.

CDFW Photo: Youth hunter at the Modoc National Wildlife Refuge.

###

Media Contacts:
Steve Burton, CDFW Northern Region, (530) 340-0104
Peter Tira, CDFW Communications, (916) 215-3858