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.

BIG PINE – The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) announced that a sustained power outage has led to the widespread loss of fish at the Fish Springs Trout Hatchery. The power outage, which was outside CDFW’s control, occurred in the afternoon of Tuesday, May 20, 2025, in the Owens Valley, and lasted more than two hours. Fish Springs Trout Hatchery, powered by the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, has backup diesel motors which can supply continued water pumping during power outage events. During the power outage on Tuesday, the backup diesel motors were non-operational due to a software issue. A contractor had been previously scheduled to come to the hatchery on Thursday, May 22 to diagnose the software issue, assess the motors, and help CDFW resolve the problem.

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) is seeking data and public comments on a petition to list Morro manzanita under the California Endangered Species Act (CESA).

The Wildlife Conservation Board (WCB) has approved $59.5 million in grants to support 25 habitat protection and restoration projects in 21 counties across California. Awarded at WCB’s May 22 meeting, the projects will safeguard nearly 23,000 acres of the state’s most ecologically important landscapes.

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) is now accepting applications for a limited number of deer and wild pig hunting access permits for opening weekend, Aug. 9 and 10, 2025, in Merced County (Zone A) for the general season. This is not a special hunt; the drawing is to control the number of hunters in these areas on opening weekend only.