Re: SalmoG. General opinion seems to be that unmarked wild returns are steady or on an up trend based on past encounter rates. Granted that needs some quantifying and is anecdotal at best.

If we could set aside the obvious lack of hard data and for a moment say that this is indeed the case, wild fish in this time period are more plentiful now than a few years ago in spite of the circumstances, would anyone venture a guess as to how that is possible.

Snider fish reproducing with wild fish = the appearance of more early "wild" fish coming back seems to be an easy target? How would one study that particular issue? Would some sort of DNA sampling be able to delineate hatchery fish from, H+W from W+W fish?
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EZ Thread Yarn Balls

"I don't care how you catch them, as long as you treat them well and with respect." Lani Waller in "A Steelheader's Way."