News Archive

On Friday, May 16, 2025, the National Marine Fisheries Service published the annual West Coast salmon fishing regulations for federal waters, including those for California’s limited ocean recreational salmon season.

While low Chinook salmon counts have called for the continued closure of Chinook salmon fishing in the Klamath River Basin and mainstem Sacramento River, Chinook fishing opportunities will be allowed in three inland Central Valley rivers for the first time in two years.

State health agencies determined that Pacific sardine sampled off Southern California contained elevated levels of domoic acid and recommended a fishery restriction for Southern California for the commercial and recreational take of sardine for human consumption in the area.

In a significant shift of California’s salmon strategy, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) has begun releasing juvenile fall-run Chinook salmon from CDFW-operated hatcheries into the main stem of the Sacramento River for the first time.

Last week, the California Fish and Game Commission (Commission) increased the northern pintail bag limit to three for the first time in almost 30 years. While population estimates are sufficient to support more pintail hunting opportunities, depleted population estimates for the recreational barred sand bass fishery called for the Commission to reduce a five-fish bag limit to four. The Commission took these and other actions affecting California’s natural resources at its April 16-17 meeting in Sacramento.