WRoutlaw

When I first started this thread, I was not limiting this discussion to steelhead only... I was questioning the wisdom of broodstock programs for any anadramous salmonids.

I would not be so quick to discount the Chilcote findings on the coho wild broodstock program I referenced. Similar observations have been made for hatchery steelhead from wild broodstock as well.

hatchery:wild steelhead don\'t mix

"These results confirm that hatchery fish are maladapted for reproductive survival in the natural environment. This confirmation is robust and applies to hatchery fish regardless of hatchery broodstock origin and various attempts to mimic the genetic and reproductive characteristics of wild fish. Further, it appears supplementation of depressed wild populations with hatchery spawners is an ineffective conservation strategy."
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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!