Obama Administration lists Pacific smelt under Endangered Species Act
Published: Tuesday, March 16, 2010, 8:46 PM
Updated: Tuesday, March 16, 2010, 8:47 PM
By Scott Learn, The Oregonian
These smelt were caught in the Sandy River in 2003. The fish used to have huge runs in the Sandy and Columbia rivers, but their numbers have declined in recent years.Into the mid 1900s, Pacific smelt arrived in such abundance this time of year in Washington's Cowlitz River that tribal fishermen could rake them out of the water.
This year, the smelt, or "eulachon," appeared on one Friday afternoon, said Nathan Reynolds, Cowlitz Indian Tribe ecologist. For the tribe's annual eulachon ceremony on March 6, there were no smelt to catch.
That alarming trend is the backdrop for the Obama administration's decision, announced Tuesday, to list the Pacific smelt population that frequents the Columbia River as threatened, adding another fish to the Columbia's 13 listings of salmon and steelhead under the U.S. Endangered Species Act.
The smelt decision doesn't pack the drama or economic wallop of the salmon listings. But it will affect river habitat plans, fishing seasons, water flow from dams and permits for dredging and other work in and around Northwest rivers.
It also will force the government to take the small forage fish into account when regulating smelt bycatch in the ocean shrimp fleet.
Pacific smelt once swarmed from the ocean up the Columbia, Cowlitz, Lewis and Sandy rivers in massive spring migrations, attracting legions of dip-net-toting anglers.
But their numbers are at or near historical lows, and the fish is at at "moderate risk of extinction," the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said.
In 2007, the Cowlitz Indian Tribe in Washington asked NOAA to list smelt populations in Oregon, Washington and California for protection.
They're important to Native American tribes, to ocean and river food chains and -- when they're abundant -- to recreational and commercial fishermen, who sell them as food and fish bait.
The government hasn't kept close tabs on smelt, a fact that commercial fishing groups cited in opposing the listing.
Smelt populations are unpredictable, said Garth Griffin, a NOAA fishery biologist. Historical evidence indicates they dropped precipitously from 1830 to 1860, for example, then rebounded.
"They are a mysterious fish -- they're a species that can have booms and busts," Griffin said. "But what's happened in modern history is that the booms are much less abundant than the busts. That's very worrisome."
Pacific smelt typically spend three to five years in saltwater from Northern California to Alaska before returning to freshwater to spawn from late winter through midspring. They acted as a "salvation fish" for tribes, bringing badly needed fat after long winters.
In the portion of the species' range that lies south of the U.S.–Canadian border -- the population addressed by Tuesday's listing -- most smelt originate in the Columbia River basin.
The Columbia River Fishermen's Protective Union opposed the listing, saying the fish have shown resilience.
Gary Soderstrom, the group's former president and a commercial fisherman, said reports he got from fishermen indicated the fish were abundant in Grays River and other spots this year.
"I can see some reason to be conservative," Soderstrom said. "But this (downturn) is nothing new. Even when nobody fished them, this happened."
This year, the two states stopped smelt fishing, once year-round, on March 11. It's still allowed on the Sandy River. But smelt haven't shown up in numbers there since 2003.
NOAA's announcement didn't list fishing among the threats to Pacific smelt. It did include climate change, which Griffin said seems to be diminishing the plankton the smelt feed on in their traditional range.
Threats also include reduced water flows, bycatch in the shrimp fishery, water management and habitat changes in the Klamath and Columbia river basins, and predation by seals, sea lions and birds.
-- Scott Learn
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