Column: We’re wiping out the Southern California steelhead trout. Time to fix that
The state Fish and Game Commission recently declared the Southern California steelhead trout an endangered species. You think? These native beauties have been endangered for decades. In March, there was excitement when one steelhead was spotted in the Santa Ynez River basin in Santa Barbara County. “One fish where 25,000 used to be,” says Russell Marlow, south coast project manager for California Trout, a nonprofit activist organization. … “While I celebrate the ability of one fish to exist, it’s a giant red flag.” Three adult steelhead were sighted five years ago in the Santa Clara River that flows between Santa Clarita and Oxnard, Marlow adds. Only 177 Southern California steelhead have been seen in the last 25 years, he says. Endangered? They’re practically extinct.
-Written by LA Times columnist George Skelton.Related fish articles: