As an angler and journalist who has spent thousands of hours fishing on the American River, writing about its fisheries and fighting for the restoration of its once abundant fish populations, I would like to share an American River update from biologist Tom Cannon on the salmon fishery on this unique urban river that flows through the Sacramento Metropolitan area.
On my hundreds of trips to the river since I was a child, I have caught virtually every fish found on the river. I caught my first Chinook salmon, my first steelhead, my first legal-sized striped bass and my first American shad on the river — and many of each of those species at a variety of locations since then.
I also have landed many Sacramento pike-minnows, Sacramento suckers, bluegill and largemouth bass in the river. I have also hooked tule perch, carp and brown bullheads on the river and its backwaters.
Biologist Tom Cannon is also another avid American River angler who has been fighting for the recovery of the American River and other California fisheries for decades — and I find him an invaluable source for information about the American River and other California fisheries. You can read his recent blog post on the American River salmon fishery with the graphs here: calsport.org/...
In a 10/19/2023 post and a 11/21/2024 post on his California Fisheries Blog on the California Sportfishing Protection Alliance website, Cannon discussed how the lack of access to Folsom Reservoir’s deep cold-water pool results in delayed natural and hatchery spawning of American River fall-run salmon.
“Delays, and spawning in warmer water, cause reductions in spawning success, smolt production, recruitment into harvestable fishery stocks, and spawning escapement (run size) to the American River. Lower salmon contributions from the American River significantly reduce California coastal and river salmon fishery stocks. Poor production in the American River contributed to the closure of California salmon fisheries in 2023-2025,” Cannon writes.
“During the 2020-2022 drought, Reclamation released water from the lower-level power bypass (sacrificing hydropower production) to provide the cold water (<55ºF) salmon needed for spawning in the ten-mile spawning reach from Nimbus Dam (near Fair Oaks gage) to the William Pond gage (Figure 1). This is the prime spawning reach for salmon in the lower American River. However, in the fall of the wetter years 2023-2025, Reclamation did not use the power bypass to release cold water (Figures 2 and 3), despite higher storage levels than during the drought (Figure 4). The lack of cold water delayed natural spawning and hatchery egg taking, to the detriment of egg viability, fry production, and smolts reaching the ocean.”
Cannon continues:
“Ultimately, the number of adult salmon returning to the American River to spawn (escapement) is the important measure of success. There are many factors that may contribute to the number of returns. Recent returns are up (Figure 5). The 2023 and 2024 returns were good despite having been the product of the 2020-2022 drought reproduction (Figurer 6). Closed fisheries in 2023 and 2024 contributed to higher escapements.
“I also believe efforts to improve fall water temperatures below Folsom during the drought improved both the wild and hatchery components of escapement. I remain concerned that a return to warmer fall water temperatures will hinder future escapement.
“I am also concerned with apparent efforts to sustain higher fall 2025 reservoir levels (see Figure 4) by reducing tailwater stream flow rates (Figure 7). Such low flows reduce the quantity and quality of salmon spawning habitat. Many critical spawning side channels become dewatered at such low flows1. Main channel velocities, substrate, and depths are also compromised at low flow rates.”
Cannon also points out that “Reclamation also reduced funding for the salmon hatchery and for river habitat projects in 2025, and will likely do the same in subsequent years. This strategy will not help to recover American River salmon stocks to levels that once again can contribute toward commercial and recreational salmon fisheries.”
As I wrote in an article here in October, the salmon and steelhead populations of this unique urban fishery are in jeopardy as the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) says it plans “significant reductions” in Chinook salmon and steelhead trout production at the Nimbus Fish Hatchery beginning in fall 2025, due to cutbacks in federal funding for the facility.
“As a result, CDFW will reduce fall-run Chinook salmon smolt production by 50%, from 4.5 million to 2.25 million. Steelhead trout production will also be cut in half, from 430,000 to 215,000, deviating from standard hatchery practice,” said Steve Gonzalez, CDFW information officer: www.dailykos.com/…
To date this issue with reduced federal funding by the Trump Administration hasn't been resolved.
