Appendix B Fishery Resources APPENDIX B Fishery Resources Affected Environment The fishery resources in the Sacramento River near the Red Bluff Diversion Dam (RBDD) consist of a diverse assemblage of fish species including native and non-native (introduced species). Table B-1 provides a species list of those fish that may likely be found at or near RBDD at some time during their life history. Of those species shown in Table B-1, four groups of fish species will be discussed together in this section because of their family relationship, life history characteristics, legal status, and occurrence within the project area. These groups include: • Native anadromous salmonids (NAS) • Other native anadromous fish (NAO) • Non-native anadromous fish (NNA) • Resident native and non-native fish (RN and RNN) TABLE B-1 Fish Found in the Sacramento River near RBDD Common Name Scientific Name Group Native Introduced Chinook salmona Oncorhynchus tshawytscha NASb X Steelheadc Oncorhynchus mykiss irideus NAS X Sockeye salmon Oncorhynchus nerka NNASd Xe Pink salmon Oncorhynchus gorbuscha NNAS Xf Pacific lamprey Lampetra tridentata NAOg X River lamprey Lampetra ayresi NAO X Green sturgeon Acipenser medirostris NAO X White sturgeon Acipenser transmontanus NAO X Striped bass Morone saxatilis NNAh X American shad Alosa sapidissima NNA X Rainbow trouti Oncorhynchus mykiss RNj X Hitch Lavinia exilicauda RN X Sacramento splittail Pogonichthys macrolepidotus RN X Hardhead Mylopharodon conocephalus RN X Sacramento pikeminnow Ptychocheilus grandis RN X Speckled dace Rhinichthys osculus RN X California roach Hesperoleucus symmetricus RN X Sacramento sucker Catostomus occidentalis RN X Tule perch Hysterocarpus traski RN X Prickly sculpin Cottus asper RN X RDD\073200002 (NLH3637.DOC) B-1 APPENDIX B FISHERY RESOURCES TABLE B-1 Fish Found in the Sacramento River near RBDD Common Name Scientific Name Group Native Introduced Riffle sculpin Cottus gulosus RN X Sacramento blackfish Orthodon microlepidotus RN X Threespine stickleback Gasterosteus aculeatus RN X Brown trout Salmo trutta RNNk X Threadfin shad Dorosoma petenense RNN X Largemouth bass Micropterus salmoides RNN X Spotted bass Microterus punctulatus RNN X Smallmouth bass Micropterus dolomieui RNN X Green sunfish Lepomis cyanellus RNN X Bluegill Lepomis macrochirus RNN X Redear sunfish Lepomis microlophus RNN X Pumkinseed Lepomis gibbosus RNN X Black crappie Pomoxis nigromaculatus RNN X White crappie Pomoxis annularis RNN X Channel catfish Ictalurus punctatus RNN X White catfish Ictaurus catus RNN X Black bullhead Ictalurus melas RNN X Yellow bullhead Ictalurus nalalis RNN X Golden shiner Notemigonus crysoleucas RNN X Fathead minnow Pimephales promelas RNN X Goldfish Carassius auratus RNN X Carp Cyprinus carpio RNN X Mosquitofish Gambusia affinis RNN X a Fall, late-fall, spring, and winter Chinook salmon runs b Native anadromous salmonid c Anadromous form of O. mykiss d Non-native anadromous salmonid e Likely non-native kokannee salmon f Non-native to the Sacramento River g Native anadromous other h Non-native anadromous i Resident form of O. mykiss j Resident native k Resident non-native Sources: Moyle, 1976; Lee et al., 1980; and K. Brown and D. Killam, pers. comm. B-2 RDD\073200002 (NLH3637.DOC) APPENDIX B FISHERY RESOURCES Native Anadromous Salmonid Species The Sacramento River near RBDD provides essential habitat for the freshwater life stages of Chinook salmon as well as steelhead. Within California’s Central Valley, the Sacramento River provides a corridor for the anadromous salmonid resources between upstream reaches and the tributaries to the Sacramento River and the Pacific Ocean. The Sacramento River is the largest river system in California with more than 90 percent of the Central Valley salmon spawning and rearing within the Sacramento River system. The Sacramento River supports four runs (races) of Chinook salmon: fall, late-fall, winter, and spring run. The fall-run Chinook salmon is the predominant salmon in the Central Valley. Fall-run steelhead are also found in the Central Valley with almost the entire population restricted to the Sacramento River watershed. The Sacramento River does not contain native coho or other salmon species or native coastal cutthroat trout. The number of Chinook salmon and steelhead spawners estimated passing upstream of RBDD from 1970 through 1999 are summarized in Table B-2. TABLE B-2 Estimated Chinook Salmon Spawning Escapement Upstream of RBDD (1970 to 2000) Species Average Low (year) High (year) Fall 75,017 29,898 (1977) 205,487 (1997) Late-fall 10,131 291 (1994) 19,261 (1975) Winter 10,783 189 (1994) 53,089 (1971) Spring 6,960 163 (1998) 25,095 (1976) Steelhead 4,189 104 (1998) 13,240 (1970) Fall-run Chinook salmon are the dominate run in the watershed, and on the average over the 30-year period, escapement upstream of RBDD exceeded all other Chinook runs by greater than 7-fold (Table B-2). However, as shown on Figure B-1, the annual escapement of fall Chinook salmon upstream of RBDD has varied greatly over the last 30 years. (All figures are located at the end of this appendix.) The annual fall Chinook escapement upstream of RBDD has ranged from over 205,000 (1997) to less than 30,000 (1977) with an increasing trend in escapement over that period (Figure B-2). Since 1970, late-fall-run Chinook salmon escapement upstream of RBDD has averaged approximately 10,000 adults and has ranged from greater than 53,000 (1971) to less than 300 (1994) (Table B-2). The trend for late-fall Chinook escapement upstream of RBDD has been a gradual decline since 1970 (Figure B-3). Annual winter-run Chinook salmon escapement has also averaged approximately 10,000 adults upstream of RBDD. The annual escapement of winter-run upstream of RBDD has declined significantly over the 30 years since 1970 (Figure B-4). As shown in Table B-2, winter Chinook salmon escapement upstream of RBDD in 1971 was greater than 53,000 adults. Also as shown on Figure B-4, except for the year 1981, annual estimates of winter- run Chinook passing RBDD since 1977 have never exceed 5,000 adults, a decrease greater than 10-fold over the last 30 years. Spawning escapement of Central Valley spring-run Chinook salmon has also varied since 1970 (Table B-2). The annual spring-run Chinook salmon escapement upstream of RBDD in the last 30 years has averaged less than 7,000 spawners and has ranged from greater than 25,000 in 1975 to less than 200 adults in 1998. Since 1990, spring-run Chinook salmon spawning escapement upstream of RBDD has not exceeded 1,000 adults (Figure B-5). RDD\073200002 (NLH3637.DOC) B-3 APPENDIX B FISHERY RESOURCES The annual spawning escapement upstream of RBDD since 1970 is summarized in Table B-2. As shown in Table B-2, the annual number of steelhead spawners has averaged approximately 4,000 adults. The trend over the last 30 years has indicated a steady decline in the annual numbers of spawners (Figure B-6) from over 10,00 in the early 1970s to less than a thousand by the later 1990s (Figure B-6). Furthermore, it is estimated that, currently, approximately 10 percent to 30 percent of adult steelhead in the Sacramento River are of natural (non-hatchery) origin (McEwan and Jackson, 1996). Life History Characteristics and Habitat Requirements Specific life history timing for the anadromous salmonids near the project area is provided in Table B-3. TABLE B-3 Life History Timing for Native Anadromous Salmonids in the Sacramento River in the Vicinity of RBDD Adult Name Immigration Spawning Incubation Rearing Juvenile Emigration October- October- December- Fall Chinook July-December December-July December March June Late-fall January- April- October-April January-June April-December Chinook April November Spring August- August- April-July October-April October-May Chinook October December Winter December-July April-August April-October July-March July-March Chinook August-March December- December- Year-round Steelhead January-October April June (1-2 years) As shown on Figure B-7, each of the five salmonid species have distinct periods when the adults are actively immigrating upstream through the project area. Factors that may affect the timing adult passage include water-year type, river flows, weather events, and RBDD operations. Habitat needs of the four runs of salmon and steelhead are similar, but each species differs somewhat in its freshwater habitat requirements. These differences are important and have implications from a resource management standpoint. The habitat needs of salmon and steelhead include physical habitat for adult migration and holding, spawning and egg incubation, fry and juvenile rearing, and smolt emigration. Adequate flows, water temperatures, water depths and velocities, appropriate spawning and rearing substrates, and the availability of in-stream cover and food are critical for the propagation and survival of all salmonids in the Sacramento River. Each of the life stages of these species has its own specific habitat requirements. Adult spawning and egg incubation requires suitable water velocity, temperature, depth, and substrate (gravel) size. Adult spring-run Chinook salmon and steelhead have additional habitat needs for longer-term holding habitat, in which pool size and depth, temperature, cover, and proximity to cover and spawning areas are important requirements. Newly emerged fry and juvenile salmonids require rearing habitat where low velocities, open cobble substrate for predator refuge, cool water temperatures, and adequate food B-4 RDD\073200002 (NLH3637.DOC) APPENDIX B FISHERY RESOURCES production are critical features. Emigration of smolts to the ocean and the immigration of spawning adults require adequate barrier-free passage, adequate transport flows, and adequate water depths and temperatures to complete those migrations. In the vicinity of RBDD the Sacramento River acts primarily as a transport corridor for adults immigrating upstream, juvenile fry rearing and dispersing, and smolts emigrating downstream.