Attachment_20-Coleman_NFH_FY22_Annual_Report.pdf

COLEMAN NATIONAL FISH HATCHERY

ANNUAL REPORT

FISCAL YEAR – 2022

Prepared by:

U.S. FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE

COLEMAN NATIONAL FISH HATCHERY

ANDERSON, CALIFORNIA 96007

Table of Contents

LIST OF TABLES AND APPENDICES

INTRODUCTION

STATION HIGHLIGHTS

Funding

Personnel

FISH PRODUCTION SUMMARY

Fall Chinook Salmon (FCS) Brood Year 2021 (CSA-FBW-21-COL)

Broodstock Collection and Spawning

Incubation

Juvenile Rearing

Marking and Tagging

Release

Late Fall Chinook Salmon Brood Year 2021 (CSA-LBW-21-COL)

Juvenile Rearing

Release

Late Fall Chinook Salmon Brood Year 2022 (CSA-LBW-22-COL)

Broodstock Collection and Spawning

Incubation

Juvenile Rearing

Steelhead Brood Year 2021 (CVS-WBW-21-COL)

Juvenile Rearing

Release

Steelhead Brood Year 2022 (CVS-WBW-22-COL)

Broodstock Collection and Spawning

Broodstock Reconditioning

Incubation

Juvenile Rearing

Winter Chinook Salmon Brood Year 2021 (WCS-WBD-21-LIV)

Egg and Fry Transfers (To Coleman NFH and Mount Lassen Trout Farms)

Juvenile Rearing (Coleman NFH)

Juvenile Rearing (Mount Lassen Trout Farms)

Release

Winter Chinook Salmon Brood Year 2022 (WCS-WBD-22-LIV)

Broodstock Collection and Spawning

CYCLICAL MAINTENANCE AND CONSTRUCTION

Maintenance Activities

Water Treatment and Delivery

Fish Ladder and Spawning Building

Fish Distribution Trucks

Other Government Vehicles

Electrical

Permits and Reporting

HVAC

Renovations

Telecommunications

Mount Lassen Trout Farm

Livingston Stone NFH

Other Maintenance

OUTREACH, INFORMATION, AND EDUCTION

MEETINGS, TRAINING, AND OTHER EVENTS

List of Tables and Appendices

TABLES

1. Fall Chinook salmon brood year 2021 number of female, male, and jack broodstock spawned at Coleman NFH by date and take

2. Fall Chinook salmon brood year 2021 disposition and number of fish collected at Coleman NFH from 5 October 2021 through 7 December 2021

3. Fall Chinook salmon brood year 2021 crosses culled prior to inventory and estimated green eggs culled by take

4. Fall Chinook salmon brood year 2021 numbers of green eggs, eyed eggs, post-reduction eyed eggs, eggs per female, eggs per ounce, and percent survival to the eyed egg stage by date spawned and take

5. Summary by month of number brood year 2021 juvenile fall Chinook salmon in raceways, total mortality, mean weight, length, DI, FCR and total pounds of feed fed

6. Fall Chinook salmon brood year 2021 number released, location, fish/lb, and total weight by date and cwt

7. Summary by month of number brood year 2021 juvenile late fall Chinook salmon in raceways, total mortality, mean weight, length, DI, FCR and total pounds of feed fed

8. Late fall Chinook salmon brood year 2021 number released, location, fish/lb, and total weight by date and cwt

9. Late fall Chinook salmon brood year 2022 numbers of hatchery-origin and natural-origin, male, female, and jack broodstock spawned at Coleman NFH by date and take

10. Late fall Chinook salmon brood year 2022 disposition of fish returning to Coleman NFH

11. Late fall Chinook salmon brood year 2022 numbers of hatchery-origin green eggs, eyed eggs, post-reduction eyed eggs, eggs per female, eggs per ounce, and percent survival to the eyed egg stage by date spawned and take

12. Late fall Chinook salmon brood year 2022 numbers of natural-origin green eggs, eyed eggs, eggs per female, eggs per ounce, and percent survival to the eyed egg stage by date spawned and take

13. Late fall Chinook salmon brood year 2022 numbers of hatchery-origin and natural-origin green eggs, eyed eggs, eggs per female, eggs per ounce, and percent survival to the eyed egg stage

14. Summary by date of brood year 2022 late fall chinook salmon treatments, dosage, and rearing units/groups treated

15. Summary by month of number brood year 2022 juvenile late fall Chinook salmon in raceways, total mortality, mean weight, length, DI, FCR and total pounds of feed fed

16. Summary by month of number brood year 2021 juvenile steelhead in raceways, total mortality, mean weight, length, DI, FCR and total pounds of feed fed

17. Steelhead brood year 2021 number released, location, fish/lb, and total weight by date and raceway

18. Steelhead brood year 2022 numbers of female and male, short, and long broodstock spawned at Coleman NFH by date and take

19. Steelhead brood year 2022 numbers of green eggs, eyed eggs, post-reduction eyed eggs, eggs per female, eggs per ounce, and percent survival to the eyed egg stage by date spawned and take from short females

20. Steelhead brood year 2022 numbers of green eggs, eyed eggs, post-reduction eyed eggs, eggs per female, eggs per ounce, and percent survival to the eyed egg stage by date spawned and take from long females

21. Steelhead brood year 2022 numbers of green eggs, eyed eggs, eggs per female, eggs per ounce, and percent survival to the eyed egg stage from short and long females

22. Summary by date of brood year 2022 steelhead treatments, dosage, and rearing units/groups treated

23. Summary by month of numbers of brood year 2022 juvenile steelhead in tanks and raceways, total mortality, mean weight, length, DI, FCR and total pounds of feed fed

24. Lot, take, date spawned, numbers of eyed eggs, life stage at transfer, number transferred, transfer dates, and rearing facility for progeny of winter Chinook captive brood stock spawned at the Livingston Stone NFH and transferred to the Coleman NFH and Mount Lassen Trout Farm

25. Summary by month of number brood year 2021 winter Chinook salmon reared at Coleman NFH in tanks and raceways, total mortality, mean weight, length, DI, FCR and total pounds of feed fed

26. Summary by month of number brood year 2021 winter Chinook salmon reared at Mount Lassen Trout Farm in tanks and raceways, total mortality, mean weight, length, DI, FCR and total pounds of feed fed

27. Winter Chinook salmon brood year 2021 reared at CNFH and MLTF, number released, CWT, fish/lb, weight, and release location by date and cwt

28. Winter Chinook salmon brood year 2022 disposition and number of fish passed and collected for broodstock at Coleman NFH from 16 November 2021 through 13 June 2022

29. Take, date spawned, numbers of eyed eggs, life stage at transfer, transfer dates, and rearing facility for progeny of winter Chinook salmon captive brood stock spawned at the Livingston Stone NFH and transferred to the Coleman NFH and Mount Lassen Trout Farm

APPENDICES

A. Coleman NFH Station Personnel

B. Lot Designator Codes

C. Station Photos

INTRODUCTION

Located in California’s Central Valley, Coleman National Fish Hatchery (NFH) is situated on the north bank of Battle Creek, a tributary of the Sacramento River. Coleman NFH was established in 1942 to mitigate for the loss of salmonid spawning habitat that ensued following the construction of Shasta and Keswick Dams on the Sacramento River. The hatchery is operated by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (USFWS or Service) and funded by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (BoR).

The hatchery propagates four distinct runs of fish: fall Chinook salmon (FCS), late fall Chinook salmon (LFCS), winter Chinook salmon (WCS), and steelhead (STT). Annual production goals for Coleman NFH are 12 million fall Chinook salmon, 1 million late fall Chinook salmon, and 600,000 steelhead. In addition to these mitigation production goals, Coleman NFH is rearing winter Chinook salmon on a provisional basis as part of an effort to reintroduce the endangered fish to the Battle Creek drainage.

The hatchery is situated on 75 acres of land, and an additional 63 acres exist in perpetual easements. The hatchery has three water intake structures on Battle Creek, allowing for uninterrupted delivery of rearing water to the facility. Water treatment at Coleman NFH is accomplished through a combination of settling, filtration, and ozonation. There are 2 settling ponds that are used to reduce suspended solids prior to filtration. A four bay Dual Media Filter system capable of filtering 45,000 gallons per minute further reduces levels of suspended solids.

The Ozone Treatment Plant is capable of treating 30,000 gallons per minute and greatly reduces the risk of fish pathogens being introduced into the facility.

The hatchery operates a barrier weir spanning the entire width of Battle Creek, capable of diverting fish through a fish ladder and into several large broodstock holding ponds. The Spawning Building contains a cross-channel equipped with a hydraulic fish-crowder connecting the primary holding ponds. A tower containing a vertical fish lift and an anesthetizing tank connects the cross-channel with the sorting area in the spawning building.

The facility has a combination of 28 15x150ft raceways and 30 8x80ft raceways for juvenile rearing. The Incubation Building houses heath stack incubation trays and early-rearing tanks.

Other buildings on the property include: The Administration Building, Shop Building, Vehicle Storage Building, Fabrication Shop/Maintenance Building, Feed Storage Building, 3 Residences, Chiller Building, and the Emergency Generator Building.

Also located on the facility is the CA/NV Fish Health Center that consists of two former residences converted into offices and lab spaces, and a wet lab located on the south side of the hatchery.

Located on the hatchery grounds adjacent to the wet lab is the Anderson Field Office, which is a satellite workstation of the Red Bluff Fish and Wildlife Office (Red Bluff FWO).

STATION HIGHLIGHTS

Funding Coleman NFH is fully funded by the BoR.

Personnel At the end of the fiscal year Coleman NFH was staffed with a Project Leader, a Deputy Project Leader, a Supervisory Facility Operations Specialist, an Administrative Officer, a Fisheries Program Assistant, a Supervisory Fish Biologist, 2 Fish Biologists, an Information and Education Specialist, a Motor Vehicle Operator, 6 Animal Caretakers, 3 Electronic Industrial Control Mechanics, an Electrician, 2 Maintenance Mechanics, and a Maintenance Worker.

At the end of the fiscal year Livingston Stone NFH was staffed with a Fish Biologist, a Motor Vehicle Operator, and a Biological Science Technician.

Summary of significant staffing changes during fiscal year 2022: Norm Daniels (Electronic Industrial Control Mechanic) retired on 18 December 2021. Cody Thomas was promoted from Animal Caretaker to Electronic Industrial Control Mechanic on 30 January 2022. Spencer Gutenberger (Motor Vehicle Operator) resigned on 12 February 2022. Justin Ericson (Electronic Industrial Control Mechanic) was hired on 13 February 2022. David Costas (Animal Caretaker) transferred on 26 March 2022. Clay Hines (Animal Caretaker) resigned on 21 May 2022.

Tadonisha Campos Mejia, Sue Lynn Hanson, Christina Sullivan, and William Worley were all hired as new Animal Caretakers on 31 July 2022. Michael Estes (Motor Vehicle Operator) was hired on 14 August 2022. Taylor Lipscomb (Supervisory Fish Biologist) transferred on 27 August 2022. Alexandra Santos (Biological Science Tech) was hired on 11 September 2022. Travis Webster (Fish Biologist) transferred on 24 September 2022.See Appendix A for a complete list of station personnel.

FISH PRODUCTION SUMMARY

Fall Chinook Salmon Brood Year 2021 (CSA-FBW-21-COL)

Broodstock Collection and Spawning The fish ladder was opened for collection of FCS broodstock on 1 October 2021. The first spawning take occurred on 5 October 2021 (Table 1); over 50% of female FCS handled were found to be ripe, green females were banked in Pond 5, green and extra males were banked in Ponds 3 and 4. Spawning continued with sufficient numbers of broodstock returning to meet spawning targets.

Incidence of pre-spawn mortality (DIPS) was unusually high this year (Table 2). In anticipation of a storm event the weekend of 23-24 October 2021, that was considered capable of producing flows that would likely permit fish to ascend above the barrier weir, it was decided to allow a larger than normal number of broodstock to enter the hatchery. The increased number of broodstock in the holding ponds and the high turbidity from the storm likely created the conditions that led to the increased pre-spawn mortality.

The last take (15) occurred on 4 November 2021, a total of 4,132 crosses were made and 16,260 FCS were collected throughout the spawning season.

Table 1. Fall Chinook salmon brood year 2021 number of female, male, and jack broodstock spawned at Coleman NFH by date and take Number Spawned

Date Take Female Male Jack Total 10/5/2021 1 206 202 7 415 10/7/2021 2 181 175 8 364 10/8/2021 3 146 145 1 292 10/12/2021 4 357 340 25 722 10/13/2021 5 359 349 15 723 10/14/2021 6 373 364 24 761 10/15/2021 7 180 175 5 360 10/19/2021 8 486 444 31 961 10/20/2021 9 241 235 12 488 10/21/2021 10 476 431 45 952 10/22/2021 11 200 185 15 400 10/26/2021 12 364 347 19 730 10/28/2021 13 428 422 17 867 11/2/2021 14 107 85 22 214 11/4/2021 15 28 22 3 53

Total 4,132 3,921 249 8,302

Table 2. Fall Chinook salmon brood year 2021 disposition and number of fish collected at Coleman NFH from 5 October 2021 through 7 December 2021

Disposition Female Male Jack Total Spawned 4,132 3,921 249 8,302 Excessed 828 1,821 985 3,634

DIPS1 1,799 2,123 402 4,324

Total 6,759 7,865 1,636 16,260

1. Dead in Pond Salmon (pre-spawn mortality)

Incubation Each year the spawning plan is designed to harvest more eggs than are needed to meet production goals in order to hedge against a lack of ripe fish later in the spawning season and/or poor survival of earlier egg-takes. After inventory, eggs from each take are reduced to aggregates that will populate one or more ponds while attempting to both maintain a normal distribution (bell shaped curve) of eggs over time to mimic the run/spawn timing of the natural population and to retain enough eggs to achieve the production goal of releasing 12 million FCS smolts.

In addition to the hatchery production target of releasing 12,000,000 FCS, this year additional eggs were taken for an unfed fry release. Eggs for the fry release were taken exclusively on 3 separate days to allow for genetic parentage assignment sampling by staff from the Red Bluff FWO. The genetic sampling will be used to evaluate the survival and return of fish from the unfed fry release groups. Additional eggs were also taken for the final year of a 3-year experimental paired on-site and off-site (Butte City) release.

Inventorying of FCS eggs began in late October and was completed during mid-December. Eggs were culled from several takes prior to inventorying (Table 3); this occurred due to the observation of trays with exceptionally low survival just prior to inventory.

Survival of harvested eggs to the ‘eyed egg stage’ was moderate (population mean = 81.1%).

Volumetric sampling estimated the total number of eyed eggs at the time of inventory was 16,680,433. These eggs were further reduced to an estimated 15,753,344 eggs to meet production goals (Table 4).

Table 3. Fall Chinook salmon brood year 2021 crosses culled prior to inventory and estimated green eggs culled by take

Take

Number Of Crosses

Culled

Estimated Green Eggs

8 1 5,000 10 1 5,000 11 6 30,000 Total 8 40,000

Table 4. Fall Chinook salmon brood year 2021 numbers of green eggs, eyed eggs, post-reduction eyed eggs, eggs per female, eggs per ounce, and percent survival to the eyed egg stage by date spawned and take

Date Spawned Take

Green Eggs

Eyed Eggs

Post- Reduction Eyed Eggs

Eggs per

Female

Eggs per oz

Percent Survival to Eyed

Egg Stage 10/5/2021 1 957,528 751,608 686,817 4,788 79.2 78.5 10/7/2021 2 966,623 802,879 686,817 5,370 76.2 83.1 10/8/2021 3 760,366 647,817 647,817 5,244 77.6 85.2 10/12/2021 4 1,780,884 1,486,744 1,452,150 4,947 76.4 83.5 10/13/2021 5 1,855,138 1,537,372 1,452,150 5,153 76.6 82.9 10/14/2021 6 1,947,558 1,691,048 1,452,150 5,410 76.6 86.8 10/15/2021 7 866,422 669,472 650,689 4,813 78.8 77.3 10/19/2021 8 2,374,757 1,803,442 1,803,442 4,979 76.4 75.9 10/20/2021 9 1,263,216 1,057,738 1,057,738 5,263 79.0 83.7 10/21/2021 10 2,324,472 1,835,670 1,835,670 4,956 79.5 79.0 10/22/2021 11 904,234 639,584 639,584 4,661 79.0 70.7 10/26/2021 12 1,690,614 1,353,079 1,353,079 4,696 79.4 80.0 10/28/2021 13 2,194,030 1,864,910 1,551,221 5,102 77.4 85.0 11/2/2021 14 516,085 409,570 354,520 4,869 78.9 79.4 11/4/2021 15 162,368 129,500 129,500 5,412 82.2 78.8

Total/Avg. 20,564,295 16,680,433 15,753,344 5,044 78.2 81.1

Juvenile Rearing Take 1 was transferred from the incubation stacks to Raceways 1 and 30 (ponding, past: ponded) on 13 December 2021. A portion of fry (n = 405,534) from takes 1 and 2 were ponded in the 8x80ft raceways for use in an experimental offsite release study. The study is at the request of the Golden State Salmon Association (GSSA) and the NorCal Guides Association to evaluate the practice of trucking and releasing FCS smolts offsite at the Scotty’s Landing Boat Ramp on the Sacramento River. The study was scheduled to have a 3 year duration and began with FCS BY18; however, due to the covid pandemic the offsite release of BY19 FCS fry was cancelled in the previous year.

This will be the third and final year of the study.

Typically, the spawning plan is designed so that each spawning event yields enough eggs to populate one or more ponds. This year several takes had to be combined to yield full ponds. A portion of Take 9 was ponded in Raceway 15 with Take 8; similarly, a portion of Take 13 was ponded in Raceway 23 with Take 12. Takes 14 and 15 were not large enough to form a single pond and as a result, they were ponded together in Raceway 28. In-pond screens were used to increase the initial density of single pond takes and larger two pond takes were split with a pump and electronic fish counter prior to reaching a density index (DI) of 0.30.

FCS fry were fed the BioOregon BioVita line (high energy) of fish feeds after ponding. FCS were initially fed at 1% body weight per day for the first 1-5 days, then increased to 2% for approximately 2 weeks, and finally increased from 2.4-3.0% body weight (later takes received a higher ration to ‘catch-up’. Feed conversion and growth were initially good in December and

January before slowing to lower than normal rates of feed conversion from February through April.

The slower rate of feed conversion may have been related to fish health problems arising from thiamine deficiency syndrome.

Both BY19 and BY20 FCS fry had increased levels of mortality after ponding and were diagnosed with thiamine deficiency syndrome. Adult salmon may develop a thiamine deficiency if their diet composition is heavily comprised of prey fish containing high concentrations of thiaminase (an enzyme that degrades thiamine). Furthermore, the ova developing within thiamine deficient adult female salmon may not contain adequate levels of the nutrient for early ontogeny of salmon fry prior to the start of exogenous feeding. Testing of eggs from BY21 FCS indicated that the eggs were even more deficient in thiamine than in the previous year. FCS fry had significantly elevated levels of mortality after ponding and fish exhibited symptoms consistent with thiamine deficiency syndrome (lethargic, laying on their side, and corkscrew-swimming behavior). No thiamine treatments were administered to BY21 FCS.

Table 5. Summary by month of number brood year 2021 juvenile fall Chinook salmon in raceways, total mortality, mean weight, length, DI, FCR and total pounds of feed fed

Month

Number In

Raceways Mortality

Mean Feed Fed (lbs)

(Fish/lb)

Length (in)

Density Index

(DI)

Feed Conversion

(FCR)

December 5,704,833 24,947 980.3 1.4 0.13 0.63 638 January 13,492,073 257,561 521.4 1.8 0.22 0.58 9,684 February 13,177,800 105,651 243.9 2.3 0.21 1.08 24,517 March 3,458,561 49,861 125.7 2.7 0.23 0.79 27,608 April1 3,450,727 434 108.2 3.0 0.26 0.76 3,797

1. Size at release

Marking and Tagging Coded wire tagging (CWT; tagging) and adipose-fin clipping (marking) fall Chinook salmon commenced during the last week of February and was completed on 13 April 2022. The production release group of FCS were marked and tagged at a 25% constant fractional rate, with each raceway receiving a unique CWT code. FCS reared for the paired onsite and Butte City release study were marked and tagged at a 100% rate. The FCS released for the unfed fry study received no marks or tags; however, these fish are all progeny of adults that were genetically sampled so that returning adults can be identified through parental assignment.

In previous years, Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission (PSMFC) staff have enumerated all FCS in each raceway and applied marks and CWT to 25% of the fish as they pass through the tagging trailer. This year due to staffing shortages and a desire to tag and release fish before in-river conditions deteriorated from ongoing draught, Coleman NFH staff enumerated fish in each raceway using a Vaki fish counter. PSMFC staff were then provided with the number of fish in each raceway and applied marks and CWT to 25% of the fish that were counted, this process greatly decreased the amount of time required to mark and tag each raceway.

Release There were 3 releases of BY21 FCS button-up fry totaling 1,859,029 (Table 6). At the time of release, fry were transferred from the stacks to forklift tanks loaded into the bed of pickup trucks.

Maintenance staff fabricated a bracket that both ensures the lid of the tank remains tightly shut and aids in securing the tank to the bed of the truck. All of the releases were at the Ball’s Ferry Boat Ramp on the Sacramento River. At the release site 6 inch irrigation piping was setup to aid in releasing fish into moving water. A flexible piece of hosing attached to each tank and nested within the irrigation pipe. Extra water was transported in the trucks for flushing of the tank and pipe.

These releases were at the request of the NorCal Guides and Sportsman’s Association and the

GSSA.

Due to ongoing extreme drought conditions FCS growth was accelerated as much as possible to allow for earlier production releases to occur before environmental conditions in the migration corridor deteriorated further. There were 5 production releases into Battle Creek, totaling 11,803,236.

In addition to the button-up fry and production releases of BY21 FCS; a paired offsite (Butte City) and onsite experimental release occurred. This release was part of a 3-year study at the request of the GSSA and the NorCal Guides Association. The study began in 2019 with paired releases of BY18 FCS; however, the study was cancelled the following year in 2020 due to the covid pandemic. The aim of the study is to evaluate the relative survival and return of fish released onsite into Battle Creek and those released into a net pen at Scotty’s Landing on the Sacramento River.

Last year at the time of release, it was determined that the water was too shallow at Scotty’s Landing to accommodate the net pens and the fish were instead released directly into the Sacramento River at the Butte City Boat Ramp. Due to similar low flows this year it was decided to again use the Butte City Boat Ramp site for release. A total of 339,092 fish were released for the study (167,770 at Butte City; 171,322 at Battle Creek).

Table 6. Fall Chinook salmon brood year 2021 number released, location, fish/lb, and total weight by date and cwt

Date CWT Total

Released

Location

Total Weight

(lbs) 12/17/2021 None 615,426 Ball’s Ferry 1,250.0 492 12/30/2021 None 635,998 Ball’s Ferry 1,250.0 509 1/11/2021 None 607,605 Ball’s Ferry 1,200.0 506 3/15/2022 056599 407,190 Battle Creek 125.8 3,237 3/15/2022 056601 401,033 Battle Creek 126.5 3,170 3/15/2022 056602 423,656 Battle Creek 149.4 2,836 3/15/2022 056603 335,106 Battle Creek 151.0 2,219 3/15/2022 056604 485,725 Battle Creek 164.3 2,956 3/15/2022 056605 419,110 Battle Creek 159.6 2,626 3/15/2022 056606 387,841 Battle Creek 147.2 2,635 3/18/2022 056607 444,573 Battle Creek 155.9 2,852 3/18/2022 056608 417,645 Battle Creek 168.1 2,485 3/18/2022 056609 378,596 Battle Creek 178.4 2,122 3/18/2022 056610 446,550 Battle Creek 152.9 2,921 3/18/2022 056611 418,371 Battle Creek 188.3 2,222 3/18/2022 056612 450,080 Battle Creek 181.9 2,473 3/18/2022 056613 425,332 Battle Creek 195.0 2,181 3/31/2022 056614 418,986 Battle Creek 122.6 3,418 3/31/2022 056615 386,150 Battle Creek 119.2 3,240 3/31/2022 056616 442,715 Battle Creek 115.9 3,820 3/31/2022 056617 386,787 Battle Creek 121.8 3,176 3/31/2022 056618 405,606 Battle Creek 118.2 3,432 3/31/2022 056619 393,706 Battle Creek 127.2 3,095 3/31/2022 056620 416,843 Battle Creek 136.7 3,049 4/1/2022 056621 449,339 Battle Creek 155.0 2,899 4/1/2022 056622 449,437 Battle Creek 143.0 3,143 4/1/2022 056623 436,800 Battle Creek 151.7 2,879 4/5/2022 056629 87,174 Battle Creek 79.0 1,104 4/5/2022 056630 84,148 Battle Creek 69.9 1,204 4/7/2022 056628 87,442 Butte City 72.9 1,200 4/7/2022 056631 80,328 Butte City 73.7 1,090 4/14/2022 056624 430,480 Battle Creek 102.5 4,200 4/14/2022 056625 423,927 Battle Creek 108.6 3,904 4/14/2022 056626 449,251 Battle Creek 110.4 4,069 4/14/2022 056627 472,401 Battle Creek 123.4 3,828 Total/Avg. 14,001,357 153.5 91,192

Late Fall Chinook Salmon Brood Year 2021 (CSA-LBW-21-COL)

Juvenile Rearing At the beginning of the fiscal year there were 1,039,639 juvenile brood year 2021 LFCS on station with a mean size of 24.0 fish/lb. Mean feed conversion rates for October through December were moderate (Table 7); however, individual conversion rates deviated substantially from the monthly means. In November, feed conversion rate ranged from a low of 0.35 to a high of 2.17. Often aberrant feed conversion rates are observed during smoltification, likely due to changes in the condition factor of fish during the parr smolt transformation.

Table 7. Summary by month of number brood year 2021 juvenile late fall Chinook salmon in raceways, total mortality, mean weight, length, DI, FCR and total pounds of feed fed

Month

Number In

Raceways Mortality

Mean Feed

(in)

Density Index

(DI)

Feed Conversion

(FCR)

October 1,037,660 1,979 16.5 5.7 0.15 0.94 11,974

November 798,059 487 12.3 6.3 0.18 0.89 13,524 December 77,325 96 10.1 6.7 0.21 0.89 5,349 January1 0 5 10.1 6.7 - - 159

1. Size at release

Release On 8 November 2021, there was a partial production release of 3 LFCS raceways (Table 8). The release coincided with a storm event which increased flow and turbidity along the migratory corridor. Releases during periods of increased flow and turbidity provide cover for smolts from predators and increase rates of downstream migration.

On 11 December 2021, there was a second production release of 8 LFCS raceways. In addition to the 2 production releases, there were 3 separate ‘Spring Surrogate’ releases of LFCS in December and January. Spring Surrogate releases of juvenile LFCS are used to help estimate take of natural-origin spring Chinook salmon associated with water pumping and conveyance projects in the Sacramento River Delta.

Table 8. Late fall Chinook salmon brood year 2021 number released, location, fish/lb, and total weight by date and cwt

Date CWT Total

Released

Location

Total Weight

(lbs) 11/8/2021 056465 78,049 Battle Creek 13.5 5,781 11/8/2021 056466 82,143 Battle Creek 15.2 5,404 11/8/2021 056473 75,318 Battle Creek 22.2 3.393 12/11/2021 056467 44,199 Battle Creek 11.7 3,778 12/11/2021 056469 75,832 Battle Creek 12.4 6,117 12/11/2021 056475 64,151 Battle Creek 11.2 5,728 12/11/2021 056472 75,798 Battle Creek 11.1 6,829 12/11/2021 056474 72,116 Battle Creek 9.6 7,512 12/11/2021 056476 69,270 Battle Creek 10.9 6,355 12/11/2021 056477 73,895 Battle Creek 10.1 7,316 12/11/2021 056478 78,095 Battle Creek 10.7 7,299 12/15/2021 056468 84,267 Battle Creek 15.9 5,305 12/22/2021 056470 82,626 Battle Creek 11.0 7,511 1/6/2022 056471 77,320 Battle Creek 9.9 7,810

Total/Avg. 1,033,079 12.0 86,138

Late Fall Chinook Salmon Brood Year 2022 (CSA-LBW-22-COL)

Broodstock Collection and Spawning The Fish Ladder was opened intermittently between FCS broodstock collection and the beginning of LFCS spawning to allow for passage of natural-origin LFCS, natural-origin STT, and WCS.

The ladder was opened for the start of LFCS collection on 21 December 2021. The first take of LFCS occurred on 29 December 2021. Spawning targets were reached despite fairly low numbers of broodstock returning. The last take (11) occurred on 23 February 2022, a total of 687 crosses were made (Table 9) and 2,137 LFCS were handled throughout the spawning season (Table 10).

LFCS spawning is managed as an integrated program, with natural-origin broodstock collected weekly from the Keswick Dam Fish Trap and included in spawning crosses. Previously during spawning of BY21 LFCS, the Keswick Dam Fish Trap was unavailable for use due to undergoing inspection and maintenance. This year the Keswick Dam Fish Trap is again being operated and natural-origin broodstock are being included in crosses of LFCS. Natural-origin LFCS are crossed 1:1 with hatchery-origin broodstock.

Table 9. Late fall Chinook salmon brood year 2022 numbers of hatchery-origin and natural-origin, male, female, and jack broodstock spawned at Coleman NFH by date and take

Hatchery-Origin Natural-Origin Male Male

Date Take Female Adult Jack Female Adult Jack Total 12/29/2021 1 36 32 0 1 3 0 72 1/5/2022 2 61 53 2 0 6 0 122 1/12/2022 3 70 80 2 0 0 0 150 1/19/2022 4 208 202 4 3 2 0 418 1/26/2022 5 113 113 4 2 3 0 235 2/2/2022 6 74 73 2 4 1 0 154 2/9/2022 7 29 31 0 3 2 0 65 2/16/2022 8 62 24 0 0 1 0 87 2/23/2022 9 34 13 0 1 0 0 48

Total 687 621 14 14 18 0 1354

Table 10. Late fall Chinook salmon brood year 2022 disposition of fish returning to Coleman

NFH

Disposition Female Male Jack Total Spawned 6881 621 13 1,322 Excessed 36 43 5 84

DIPS 259 408 42 709

Passed Upstream 11 10 1 22

Total 994 1,082 61 2,137

1. Includes 1 natural-origin LFCS inadvertently euthanized during broodstock sorting

Incubation An estimated 3,602,367 green eggs were harvested over the course of the LFCS spawning season.

At inventory there were a total of 3,027,493 eyed eggs (2,865,899 hatchery-origin and 161,594 natural-origin) (Tables 11 &12), survival to the eyed egg stage was 84.0%. Each year the spawning plan is designed to harvest more eggs than are needed to meet production goals in order to hedge against an early diminishing run of fish or poor survival of earlier egg takes. Excess eggs are later reduced if sufficient eggs are obtained in later takes to achieve production goals; eggs from natural-origin crosses are never reduced. A total of 1,316,000 eyed eggs were retained for production purposes (Table 13).

Table 11. Late fall Chinook salmon brood year 2022 numbers of hatchery-origin green eggs, eyed eggs, post-reduction eyed eggs, eggs per female, eggs per ounce, and percent survival to the eyed egg stage by date spawned and take

Date Spawned Take

Green Eggs

Eyed Eggs

Post- Reduction Eyed Eggs

Eggs per

Female

Eggs per oz

Percent Survival to Eyed

Egg Stage 12/29/2021 1 184,171 147,726 74,598 5,581 80.99 80.2 1/5/2022 2 286,177 242,976 156,509 5,203 79.56 84.9 1/12/2022 3 375,782 333,982 188,000 5,010 83.60 88.9 1/19/2022 4 1,032,359 870,680 159,668 5,111 76.99 84.3 1/26/2022 5 544,330 446,590 76,488 4,948 81.45 82.0 2/2/2022 6 349,176 300,926 156,285 4,988 77.20 86.2 2/7/2022 7 156,030 140,650 66,642 5,779 76.90 90.1 2/16/2022 8 287,849 225,091 185,938 4,963 76.07 78.2 2/23/2022 9 196,598 157,278 90,278 5,782 71.49 80.0

Total/Avg. 3,412,472 2,865,899 1,154,406 5,041 78.25 84.0

Table 12. Late fall Chinook salmon brood year 2022 numbers of natural-origin green eggs, eyed eggs, eggs per female, eggs per ounce, and percent survival to the eyed egg stage by date spawned and take

Date Spawned Take

Green Eggs

Eyed Eggs

Eggs per Female

Eggs per oz

Percent Survival to Eyed

Egg Stage 12/29/2021 1 23,183 19,402 5,796 82.21 83.7 1/5/2022 2 34,943 31,491 5,824 84.20 90.1 1/19/2022 4 32,490 28,332 5,111 76.99 87.2 1/26/2022 5 26,064 17,512 5,213 81.45 67.2 2/2/2022 6 33,229 31,715 6,646 72.08 95.4 2/9/2022 7 29,187 27,358 5,837 73.15 93.7 2/16/2022 8 3,241 2,062 3,241 98.20 63.6 2/23/2022 9 7,558 3,722 7,558 57.26 49.2

Total/Avg. 189,895 161,594 5,653 78.20 78.8

Table 13. Late fall Chinook salmon brood year 2022 numbers of hatchery-origin and natural-origin green eggs, eyed eggs, eggs per female, eggs per ounce, and percent survival to the eyed egg stage

Broodstock Origin

Green Eggs

Eyed Eggs

Post- Reduction

Eyed Eggs

Eggs per Female

Eggs per oz

Percent Survival to Eyed

Egg Stage Hatchery 3,412,472 2,865,899 1,154,406 5,041 78.25 84.0 Natural 189,895 161,594 161,594 5,653 78.19 78.8

Total/Avg. 3,602,367 3,027,493 1,316,000 5,447 78.22 84.0

The first take of LFCS was ponded in the 8x80ft raceways on 24 March 2022, subsequent takes followed as they reached the “button-up” fry stage; the last take (9) was ponded on 2 May 2022. This year all LFCS were ponded as ‘single-ponds’ with in-pond-screens set to maintain an acceptable minimum density. In the past, larger takes were ponded as ‘doubles’ and split at approximately 225 fish/lb when they were vaccinated for enteric redmouth disease (Yersinia ruckerii). This year the enteric redmouth vaccine is being discontinued to reduce handling and because enteric redmouth has rarely, if ever, been observed in LFCS at Coleman NFH. Therefore, it was decided to pond the LFCS in single pond increments so that they would not have to be re-handled until marking and tagging.

Marking (adipose-fin clipping) and tagging (CWT) of LFCS began 23 May 2022 and was completed 15 June 2022. LFCS were tagged from the 8ftx80ft raceways to the 15ftx150ft raceways. The AutoFish System™ used in the marking process provides an accurate census of the fish population in each raceway. The difference between the hatchery inventory number and the tagging census for all 14 raceways was exceptionally large -332,190 fish (~26%). The difference between the two numbers can be attributed to the loss that occurs in between egg inventory and ponding that hatchery staff cannot easily enumerate. Analysis of BY22 eggs indicated high levels of thiamine deficiency, perhaps leading to higher levels of mortality during post-inventory incubation.

In both April and May LFCS had higher than normal levels of mortality. The CA/NV Fish Health Center examined the fish and found no pathogens. Thiamine deficiency was suspected as the cause of the increased mortality. Beginning in late May, mortality began to moderate.

Later in June columnaris (Flavobacterium columnare) was confirmed in the LFCS raceways and was responsible for a moderate increase in mortality. Typically, staff at Coleman have used feed top-coated with oxytetracycline (OTC) along with chloramine-T to treat columnaris. This year it was decided that Romet-30 (Romet), an antibacterial treatment for animals, would be used as a first response if there was an early infection that was not yet causing large amounts of mortality.

The reasoning for using Romet early-on in the infection cycle is that it has been suggested to be effective for treating columnaris before it becomes systemic and begins infected the fish internally.

Fish feed was top-coated with Romet at a dosage of 50mg/kg of fish and administered from 26

June 2022 through 1 July 2022 (Table 14). Romet was considered moderately successful and reduced mortality during and briefly after the treatment period.

In July, columnaris and Ichthyophthirius multifiliis (ich) infections coupled to produce elevated rates of LFCS mortality once again. A subset of the most heavily affected raceways (4,8,9,10,11,12,14) were selected for treatment with chloramine-T and salt. The effect of the chloramine-T and salt treatment was inconclusive and all LFCS raceways were treated with feed top-coated with OTC (10g/100lbs) from 27 July 2022 through 9 August 2022. The OTC treatment was considered successful, and mortality decreased following treatment. There was another increase in mortality during late August. A second chloramine-T (3 days) and salt treatment (2 days) was given to all LFCS raceways from 24 August 2022 to 26 August 2022. The treatment was considered inconclusive; however, further treatment of LFCS was not necessary.

Table 14. Summary by date of brood year 2022 late fall chinook salmon treatments, dosage, and rearing units/groups treated

Dates Treatment Dosage Rearing Units/ Group Treated

6/26/2022-7/1/2022 Romet 50mg/kg Fish Raceways 1-14 7/12/2022-7/14/2022 Chloramine-T 20 mg/L Raceways 4,8,9,10,11,12,14 7/12/2022-7/14/2022 Salt 750 ppm Raceways 4,8,9,10,11,12,14 7/27/2022-8/9/2022 OTC 10g/100 lbs Raceways 1-14 8/24/2022-8/26/2022 Chloramine-T 20 mg/L Raceways 1-14 8/25/2022-8/26/2022 Salt 900 ppm Raceways 1-14

At the end of the fiscal year there were 880,478 LFCS on station with a mean size of 22.1 fish/lb (Table 15).

Table 15. Summary by month of number brood year 2022 juvenile late fall Chinook salmon in raceways, total mortality, mean weight, length, DI, FCR and total pounds of feed fed

Month

Number In

Tanks/ Raceways Mortality

Mean Feed

(in)

Density Index

(DI)

Feed Conversion

(FCR)

March 282,000 0 1,225.5 1.4 0.09 0.93 24 April 1,167630 54,370 714.6 1.7 0.15 0.69 920 May 1,176,588 24,118 160.8 2.7 0.15 0.71 3,835 June 902,002 3,320 87.5 3.3 0.04 0.92 3,945 July 886,913 15,089 52.3 3.9 0.06 0.77 5,070

August 882,580 4,333 40.8 4.2 0.07 2.29 8,133 September 880,478 2,102 22.1 5.2 0.10 0.55 9,308

Steelhead Brood Year 2021 (CVS-WBW-21-COL)

Brood year 2021 juvenile steelhead (STT) converted feed at moderate to slow rates. There were no fish health issues with the STT from the beginning of the fiscal year through release and rates of mortality were low (Table 16).

Table 16. Summary by month of number brood year 2021 juvenile steelhead in raceways, total mortality, mean weight, length, DI, FCR and total pounds of feed fed

Month

Number In

Raceways Mortality

Mean Feed

(in)

Density Index

(DI)

Feed Conversion

(FCR)

October 611,014 175 7.1 7.4 0.15 0.97 19,827

November 610,911 103 5.0 8.4 0.19 0.80 27,323 December1 610,872 39 4.5 8.7 0.21 1.11 12,912

1. Size at release

Release Steelhead release protocols have been modified several times in recent years, the following is a synopsis of recent changes to release protocols and relevant considerations. In the past, Coleman NFH released juvenile STT at Bend Bridge on the Sacramento River during the first week in January regardless of environmental conditions. In years of extreme low flow when the Bend Bridge boat ramp was not accessible for release, juvenile steelhead were trucked to the Sycamore Grove boat ramp at the former Red Bluff Diversion Dam site. These sites were selected due to their relative close proximity to the hatchery, as releasing juvenile salmonids close to the hatchery minimizes risks of straying from trucking. Furthermore, releasing juvenile steelhead onsite into Battle Creek could lead to a large number of fish residualizing within Battle Creek, especially during releases that occur during low flow.

In 2020, the Service received approval from the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) to release fish from Coleman NFH earlier (December) if there are good environmental conditions for release (i.e., a storm event with increased flow and high turbidity). In 2022, the Service received further approval from NMFS and CDFW to release juvenile STT onsite into Battle Creek. Releasing STT onsite allows for the entire production to be released in a single day, whereas trucking takes approximately 1 week to complete. Furthermore, releasing STT onsite allows for quick targeted releases during and just prior-to storm events, whereas trucking requires much greater time and is much more logistically challenging with respect to timing a production release with a quickly materializing storm event.

STT were released onsite into Battle Creek on 12 and 13 December 2021. STT were crowded to the front of each raceway and pumped through an agriculture pipe into Battle Creek below the Coleman NFH weir. A total of 610,475 juvenile STT were released into Battle Creek. (Table 17).

Table 17. Steelhead brood year 2021 number released, location, fish/lb, and total weight by date and raceway

Date Total

Released Raceway Release Location (Fish/lb)

Total Weight

(lbs) 12/12/2021 44,725 15

Battle Creek

4.5 9,917 12/12/2021 45,124 16 4.4 10,350 12/12/2021 43,999 17 4.8 9,263 12/12/2021 45,302 18 4.3 10,634 12/12/2021 42,434 19 5.0 8,487 12/12/2021 42,617 20 4.1 10,420 12/13/2021 43,854 21 4.5 9,767 12/13/2021 35,861 22 4.6 7,745 12/13/2021 44,962 23 4.7 9,506 12/13/2021 44,100 24 4.3 10,232 12/13/2021 41,735 25 4.1 10,081 12/13/2021 46,263 26 4.1 11,367 12/13/2021 47,832 27 4.6 10,467 12/13/2021 41,837 28 4.4 9,487 Total/Avg. 610,645 4.5 137,722

Steelhead Brood Year 2022 (CVS-WBW-22-COL)

Broodstock Collection and Spawning This year, a change was made to the way that steelhead broodstock are collected and held for spawning. Steelhead broodstock are classified as ‘early’ or ‘late’ if they enter the hatchery during FCS or LFCS collection respectively. Early returning steelhead, collected October through mid- December are transferred to the pre-release pond upon initial sorting. Later the pre-release pond is seined and all, or a portion of those fish are transferred to Pond 5 for use as broodstock. In past years late returning STT would be held in Pond 4 for spawning; keeping early and late returning STT in separate holding ponds allowed for spawning of nearly equal numbers of each. Starting this year, a weekly collection target was developed based upon a hypothesized run-timing distribution. Using the weekly collection target both early and late returning STT were transferred to Pond 5 and spawned together randomly. Using a single holding pond for early and late returning STT, allows for unripe LFCS to be banked in Pond 4. Previously green LFCS would either be euthanized or returned to Pond 3 which led to increased rates of pre-spawn mortality (due to re-handling of fish) and longer delays for natural-origin salmonids (i.e., WCS and STT) to be passed upstream of the barrier weir.

Steelhead broodstock collection began in early-October when the fish ladder was opened for collection of FCS. Numbers of returning steelhead were initially low in October before increasing substantially in November. STT collection had a bimodal distribution with a peak in mid- November and a second smaller peak in mid-January. The first take of STT eggs was on 29 December 2021. Spawning continued with ample numbers of ripe fish until the last take occurred on 23 February 2022. Eggs were collected from 150 long (greater than or equal to 21.75in) and 348 short (16in to 21.75in) female STT.

Table 18. Steelhead brood year 2022 numbers of female and male, short, and long broodstock spawned at Coleman NFH by date and take

Date Take

Hatchery-Origin

Total Female Male

Short Long Short Long 12/29/2021 1 17 11 20 8 56 1/5/2022 2 10 20 17 13 60 1/13/2022 3 57 33 76 14 180 1/20/2022 4 49 12 50 11 122 1/27/2022 5 40 20 52 8 120 2/2/2022 6 69 21 83 7 180 2/9/2022 7 30 20 49 1 100 2/16/2022 8 59 11 66 4 140 2/23/2022 9 17 2 17 2 38

Total 348 150 430 68 996

Broodstock Reconditioning The STT kelt release occurred on 24 February 2022, water was lowered in the Pre-release Pond and a seine net was used release fish through the wastewater canal into Battle Creek. A total of 1,157 reconditioned broodstock were released.

Incubation At inventory there were an estimated 513,297 eyed eggs from crosses of short females and 402,057 eyed eggs from long females (Tables 19 & 20). In order to increase the genetic diversity of hatchery-origin STT, the spawning plan incorporates twice as many broodstock as is needed to meet egg-take goals. Eyed eggs from short and long crosses were retained proportionally to the ratio at which they were collected. A total of 677,782 eyed eggs were and retained for production (Table 21).

Table 19. Steelhead brood year 2022 numbers of green eggs, eyed eggs, post-reduction eyed eggs, eggs per female, eggs per ounce, and percent survival to the eyed egg stage by date spawned and take from short females

Date Spawned Take

Green Eggs

Eyed Eggs

Post- Reduction Eyed Eggs

Eggs per

Female

Eggs per oz

Percent Survival to Eyed

Egg Stage 12/29/2021 1 43,551 31,108 24,188 3,350 311.1 71.4 1/5/2022 2 17,216 10,222 10,222 1,722 269.0 59.4 1/13/2022 3 128,601 88,506 88,506 2,256 297.0 68.8 1/20/2022 4 107,055 64,233 64,233 2,230 293.3 60.0 1/27/2022 5 92,492 72,989 67,067 2,434 295.5 78.9 2/2/2022 6 153,834 112,561 29,888 2,607 312.7 73.2 2/9/2022 7 71,638 46,976 38,101 2,653 293.6 65.6 2/16/2022 8 101,666 61,968 25,285 2,259 322.8 61.0 2/23/2022 9 37,846 24,734 24,734 2,703 298.0 65.4

Total/Avg. 753,899 513,297 372,224 2,468 299.2 68.1

Table 20. Steelhead brood year 2022 numbers of green eggs, eyed eggs, post-reduction eyed eggs, eggs per female, eggs per ounce, and percent survival to the eyed egg stage by date spawned and take from long females

Date Spawned Take

Green Eggs

Eyed Eggs

Post- Reduction Eyed Eggs

Eggs per

Female

Eggs per oz

Percent Survival to Eyed

Egg Stage 12/29/2021 1 36,249 30,833 23,975 3,625 208.3 85.1 1/5/2022 2 72,624 31,679 31,679 3,631 215.5 43.6 1/13/2022 3 99,280 63,664 63,664 3,008 222.6 64.1 1/20/2022 4 51,255 34,170 34,170 4,271 251.3 66.7 1/27/2022 5 97,395 84,258 77,422 5,126 226.5 86.5 2/2/2022 6 85,593 68,827 18,275 5,035 220.6 80.4 2/9/2022 7 55,783 42,100 34,147 4,291 210.5 75.5 2/16/2022 8 45,249 41,014 16,714 5,028 222.9 90.6 2/23/2022 9 6,572 5,512 5,512 3,286 212.0 83.9

Total/Avg. 550,000 402,057 305,558 4,145 222.1 73.1

Table 21. Steelhead brood year 2022 numbers of green eggs, eyed eggs, eggs per female, eggs per ounce, and percent survival to the eyed egg stage from short and long females

Broodstock Origin

Green Eggs

Eyed Eggs

Post- Reduction

Eyed Eggs

Eggs per Female

Eggs per oz

Percent Survival to Eyed

Egg Stage Short 753,899 513,297 372,224 2,468 299.2 68.1 Long 550,000 402,057 305,558 4,145 221.1 73.1

Total/Avg 1,303,899 915,354 677,782 3,306 260.2 70.2

Juvenile Rearing The first take of STT was transferred from the incubation stacks to the early-rearing tanks (tanking past: tanked) on 3 March 2022, tanking continued until the last take was tanked on 11 April 2022.

Fish were started on a high percent body weight diet, and feed conversion rates (FCR) were very good (Table 22) while in tanks. Fish were closely monitored, and tanks were split as needed to maintain acceptable density indices.

Takes 7 and 9 both had fewer eggs at inventory than needed to populate a pond. Extra eggs were retained in take 8 and allocated to be combined with each take. Feed rates were manipulated so that fish could be combined when they reached a similar size.

In the past, STT were reared in tanks until they reached a size of approximately 225 fish/lb and were then vaccinated for enteric red mouth disease, weighed, and transferred to the 8x80ft raceways. This year the enteric redmouth vaccine is being discontinued for use on STT to reduce handling and because enteric redmouth has rarely, if ever, been observed in STT at Coleman NFH.

This year STT were not weighed as they were transferred from the tanks to the 8x80ft raceways, decreasing fish stress and decreasing the amount of time and work required to complete the process. Take 1 was transferred from the tanks to the 8x80ft raceways on 21 April 2022, the last take (9) was transferred on 26 May 2022.

Marking of STT commenced on 10 May 2022. In addition to marking, the AutoFish System™ used by PFMFC provides an accurate count of fish populations in each raceway processed.

Marking was completed on 9 June 2022 and the final difference between the hatchery inventory number and the census taken from the marking trailer was -65,433 fish (~ 10.5 %). This difference represents the mortality between egg inventory and ponding (after-hatch loss) which would be very difficult to enumerate independently. STT were pumped from the 8x80ft raceways to the 15x150ft raceways on 2 separate days (2 & 9 June 2022).

During June and July mortality of STT was slightly elevated due to infection with columnaris. In August levels of mortality had risen to where treatment was deemed necessary. All 14 raceways were treated with feed top-coated with OTC at a dosage of 10g/100lbs of fish for 14 days (Table 22). The treatment was considered successful at reducing mortality. Further treatments were not necessary to control columnaris.

At the end of the fiscal year there were 615,143 steelhead on station with a mean size of 11.5 fish/lb (Table 23).

Table 22. Summary by date of brood year 2022 steelhead treatments, dosage, and rearing units/groups treated

Dates Treatment Dosage Rearing Units/ Group Treated

8/4/2022-8/17/2022 OTC 10g/100 lbs Raceways 15-28

Table 23. Summary by month of numbers of brood year 2022 juvenile steelhead in tanks and raceways, total mortality, mean weight, length, DI, FCR and total pounds of feed fed

Month

Number In Tanks/ Raceways Mortality

Mean Feed

(in)

Density Index

(DI)

Feed Conversion

(FCR)

March 533,289 4,539 1,674.3 1.3 0.23 0.57 123 April 696,006 9,388 445.9 2.0 0.20 0.56 1,082 May 634,179 2,039 101.8 3.1 0.11 0.82 3,525 June 623,063 3,053 45.1 4.1 0.05 0.68 5,239 July 620,087 2,976 29.0 4.7 0.06 1.19 8,125

August 617,890 2,197 18.2 5.5 0.08 0.96 11,864 September 615,143 2,747 11.5 6.34 0.11 0.86 16,353

Winter Chinook Salmon Brood Year 2021 (WCS-WBD-21-LIV)

Egg and Fry Transfers (To Coleman NFH and Mount Lassen Trout Farm) Transferring of eggs from Livingston Stone NFH to Mount Lassen Trout Farm (MLTF) began in August 2021 and was completed in October 2021 (Table 24). Eggs were transferred in laundry bags suspended in 5 gallon sports drink coolers.

On 4 October 2021, progeny of WCS broodstock collected from Battle Creek that had not previously been transferred to MLTF were transferred from Livingston Stone NFH to Coleman NFH. WCS were hauled in tanks mounted on 3 separate trucks (CA/NV Fish Health Center Truck, Red Bluff FWO Truck, and Coleman NFH Crew Cab). Fresh flows were not used due to concerns regarding entrainment of fish within the intakes; supplemental oxygen was used on trucks where it was available. At Coleman NFH, WCS were netted from the trucks into early-rearing tanks in the Incubation Building. WCS were hauled at very low densities and appeared healthy following transport.

Table 24. Lot, take, date spawned,…