In September 2019, the Native Fish Society submitted a petition to list Oregon Coast Spring Chinook as a threatened or endangered species under the federal Endangered Species Act. This is a reconsideration of a previous (1994) determination that did not conclude listing was warranted.
Listing coastal Chinook could have major implications for hatchery programs and harvest opportunities. The Hatchery & Wild Coexist coalition, along with several other organizations, disagrees with the petition and reacted by filing a written response SEE THE LETTER to NMFS in May 2020.
The primary argument against the listing is that spring-run Chinook are a life-history variant within a larger mixed population of Chinook and do not meet the definition of a Distinct Population Segment. Recent, October 2020, peer reviewed science supports H&WC’s position that spring Chinook are a life-history variant, not a reproductivity isolated population.
The study, recently published in Science, concludes that a small genetic difference determines migration timing. Based on this research it is probable that offspring from one redd could return as Spring Chinook or Fall Chinook.
