The "retaining hatchery steelhead" thread has been very educational for all. Thought I'd start a related topic that should also generate some lively discussion. I have heard differing opinions on the "correct" way to plant a steelhead stream in terms of run-timing.

Is it better compress the plants to return with early run-timing so as to minimize interactions with later-arriving wild stocks?

Or is it better to spread the hatchery return over a greater diversity of run-timing to increase harvest opportunity over a longer season?

Does the answer change if the plant is strictly from wild broodstock?
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"Let every angler who loves to fish think what it would mean to him to find the fish were gone." (Zane Grey)

"If you don't kill them, they will spawn." (Carcassman)


The Keen Eye MD
Long Live the Kings!