Wednesday, November 20, 2013

Salmon Have Returned - All Hail the Kings in Lagunitas Creek!

What a thrilling, perplexing, and joyous day it has been! Looking down on Lagunitas Creek while taking my dog Bodie on his normal morning walk on the Cross Marin Trail on my way to the SPAWN office, I see what is clearly a patch of light-colored gravel. A salmon redd??!?! It's November 18, the timing is right, but no rains have arrived. But wait, there she is, a huge female salmon moving in to take position over a compact, deep redd!

The coho are spawning! OR ARE THEY? 
To learn more, join a naturalist-led Creekwalk. For info and to register, click here.

I contacted another biologist in the watershed leading up to the November 9-10 SPAWN Creekwalk Naturalist Training, and he had a confirmed sighting of a pair of Chinook, or king, salmon on a compact redd in the lower reach of Lagunitas Creek. Amazing! King salmon as a species are struggling - they are the most imperiled of all Pacific salmonids. They are known to spawn in Lagunitas Creek, but evidence is usually limited to seeing one or more of their compact, deep redds in the lower reached during the weeks before the arrival of our coho. This biologist sent me photo of these kings to compare with what I had seen overlooking the creek.

Armed with binoculars, the recent photos, and my identification guides, I returned to the overlook on
the old Tocaloma Bridge and gazed down on the redd. One, then two, then three salmon! The female is recognizable by the white, dead skin on her tail. The male, dead skin along his dorsal ridge. The other, small was likely a jack, and sure acted like one! The smaller jack darted in from behind, tangled in with the female on the redd, and was quickly chased off by the big male.

All of these fish were darker than coho, lacked the red color typically seen on coho when they transform to freshwater spawners, and lacked the white gums characteristic of coho. It can be tough to identify these species being so far away as to not disturb them.

All hail the Kings! The Chinook salmon have returned to spawn in Lagunitas Creek, and the coho are not far behind. This redd, and the female guarding it, have been visible the last three days. She is looking tired and likes to fade into the shadows of the undercut bank and drift to rest on a log under the bridge.

Rains have arrived, and I am heading out to hunt for any spawning coho viewable for our first Creekwalk of the season, this Saturday! To learn more about joining a naturalist-led Creekwalk and to register, click here.

See you along the creek!

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