Wednesday August 4, 2010
This 26 inch Sacramento pikeminnow (Ptychocheilus grandis) is a native California fish found in mid-elevation rivers throughout the Sacramento and San Joaquin basins. It is believed that juveniles feed primarily on aquatic insects, but become more opportunistic predators as adults and change their diet to crustaceans and fish. Their overall predation impact on native salmonids is unknown, but research shows increased densities of Sacramento pikeminnow associationed with artificial structures such as dams, weirs, pumps, fish screens, etc. Oregon and Washington operate a sport reward program that pays anglers $4-$8 per fish for catching and removing a similar species, the northern pikeminnow (Ptychocheilus oregonensis), from the lower Columbia River.
Photo source: FISHBIO