Due to last month’s massive atmospheric river event, a new passageway opened up for these rare fish between Redwood Creek and the Pacific Ocean.
Coho salmon, one of the nation’s rarest migratory fish and an animal that holds spiritual significance for many Indigenous cultures along the West Coast is having a banger year. (For all intents and purposes, coho salmon are brats!) Historic spawning grounds have been repopulated, and numbers of these endangered salmon have surpassed decades-long lows.
The recent strong storms have only added to the coho salmon’s comeback era. Around Muir Beach, a wide waterway was opened up that allowed the fish the ability to travel from Redwood Creek to the Pacific Ocean.
“This is great news for the federally endangered coho salmon who call Redwood Creek home,” reads an Instagram post from the Golden Gate National Park Recreation Area. Adult fish, which mature between two and three years old, return from the ocean to spawn in freshwater and brackish waterways around the coastline. Coho salmon are much more reliant on these inland spawning grounds around the coast, as they travel less than other species; coho salmon might only travel a dozen or so miles (or less) to reach spawning grounds; Chinook salmon, on the other hand, often travel hundreds of miles — with records of some individuals traveling north of 1,700 miles from the coast — to spawning grounds.
“Hopefully, we will see many of the coho salmon migrating from the ocean upstream to spawn this winter,” continues the post
On November 19th, the Warm Springs Fish Hatchery located in Geyserville released roughly 3,000 juvenile coho salmon into Redwood Creek. These lil’ fish will hang out and slowly mature over the next few months in the creek; from there, the salmon — that will mature from “fry” to “smolt” before entering the ocean — will travel to their saltwater homes where they will reach sexual maturity … before returning to this very same creek to spawn.
“Thank you to the staff at California Department of Fish and Wildlife, U.S. Army Corp of Engineers, and Golden Gate Parks Conservancy who helped park staff release the juvenile coho salmon,” concludes the post. “ Let’s hope they are enjoying the newly restored habitat in Redwood Creek.”
