A program aimed at removing fish that prey on endangered Pacific Northwest salmon had a good year.
According to the Bonneville Power Administration, more than 180,000 northern pikeminnow were caught and removed from Columbia and Snake river waters.
While harvest was down a bit from 2017 due to higher river flows, angler success was better this year. The daily average catch per angler was up, and all told, anglers were paid about $1.4 million for their efforts. The reward program, running annually from May 1st through September 30th, pays registered anglers $5 to $8 per fish, nine inches or longer. The more fish an angler catches during the season, the more their pikeminnow are worth.
In 2018, state fish and wildlife biologists also released more than $1,000 specially tagged northern pikeminnow, each worth $500. This year the top 20 fishermen who participated in the program earned an average of nearly $29,000 each. The top angler earned more than $71,000, reeling in more than 8,600 fish over the five-month season.
BPA is successfully meeting its annual program goal to remove 10-to-20 percent of the predators.
Northern pikeminnow anglers caught and removed about 11.5 percent of fish more than 9 inches long. The larger fish are the portion of the northern pikeminnow population believed to eat the most salmon and steelhead smolts. (BPA)
