Tools of the fish trapping trade

Often fish trapping requires nets and PIT-tags. But when you are trapping on the mainstem Snake RIver near Lewiston tools like a chainsaw can come in handy. Spring runoff brings out-migrating juvenile salmon and steelhead trout smolts to the Snake River but, besides fish, the fish trap is also effective at catching logs and other woody debris. Crews have been busy clearing the debris so they can continue monitoring this spring’s salmonid migration to the ocean. The fish information they collect is used by state, federal, and other organizations to monitor and manage fish passage through the Snake and Columbia River migration corridor.