[ODFW-News] Wild coho season to open Oct. 1 at Siltcoos and Tahkenitch lakes

[ODFW News]

For Immediate Release Friday, Sept. 16, 2005
 
Wild coho season to open Oct. 1 at Siltcoos and Tahkenitch lakes
 
CLACKAMAS - Healthy and stable populations of local wild coho allowed
state and federal fishery managers to open Siltcoos and Tahkenitch lakes
to sport fishing starting Oct. 1, the Oregon Department of Fish and
Wildlife and NOAA Fisheries announced today.
 
The two lakes, located south of Florence, will remain open to coho
fishing through Dec. 15, 2005 or until the quota is met. Anglers may
retain one unmarked adult coho salmon per day plus one unmarked jack
coho per day from the two lakes. Anglers are limited to retaining five
adult coho, in combination, from Siltcoos and Tahkenitch lakes during
the two and a half month season.  Anglers may not continue to fish for
jack coho salmon after retaining an adult limit.  
 
This is the third year of the wild coho fishery on the two lakes. The
fishery provides anglers and local communities the opportunity to
benefit from coho salmon recovery efforts implemented under the Oregon
Plan for Salmon and Watersheds for the past nine years. In addition, the
fishery will not slow the pace of salmon recovery elsewhere in Oregon. 
 
Last year, Siltcoos had 8,025 spawning coho and Tahkenitch had 3,496.
Approximately 3,300 and 2,200 spawning salmon are needed for Siltcoos
and Tahkenitch lakes respectively to maintain healthy future generations
of coho salmon. The recent densities of spawning coho salmon in the
Siltcoos and Tahkenitch systems are among the highest currently
documented in Oregon. 
 
This year's quota has been set at 300 fish for Siltcoos Lake and 200
fish for Tahkenitch Lake, which are half the 2004 quotas. Fishery
managers reduced the quotas to because of poor catches of coho salmon in
this summer's ocean fishery.  
 
Waters open for coho angling on Siltcoos Lake are upstream from the
Highway 101 bridge and downstream of the railroad trestle on the Maple
Creek arm and the Fivemile Road crossing the Fiddle Creek arm. Waters
open for coho angling on Tahkenitch Lake are upstream from the Highway
101 bridge and downstream of the railroad trestle on the Leitel Creek
arm and ODFW Marker at the bridge on the 059 road off Douglas County
road 49 on the Fivemile Creek arm. All other specification and
restrictions as outlined in the current 2005 Oregon Sport Fishing
Regulations apply.  
 
Biologists will monitor and evaluate the coho fishing season along with
coho salmon spawning numbers to ensure that coho salmon recovery efforts
are not compromised.  
 
The decision to open the fishery was based on a scientific review of the
coho salmon populations by both ODFW and NOAA Fisheries, with input from
members of the public.
 
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