Wednesday March 12, 2025
Field & Stream —
California’s embattled salmon populations continue to struggle. According to figures released on February 26 by the California Department of Fish & Wildlife (CDFW) at an Anadromous Fishes Conservation and Management Program meeting, salmon population estimates are low throughout the Golden State.
Notably, the survey showed a population estimate of just under 166,000 fish from the Sacramento River fall-run of Chinook salmon—the state’s most significant salmon run. That estimate is down slightly from 2024 when the estimate was around 169,000 fish. Additionally, last year’s spawning escarpment—fish that return to freshwater to spawn—totaled only 99,000 adults, below the conservation goal of 122,000 to 180,000. These figures are all well below long-term averages.
Additionally, surveys show low spawning counts and population estimates for the Klamath Basin, where the 2024 fall Chinook run was just 38 percent of the long-term average.
“It’s just another bad year that is upon us, and that’s unfortunate for everybody,” Scott Artis, executive director of Golden State Salmon Association, told the LA Times. “Commercial and recreational fishing businesses have been struggling.”