Save a Smelt Kill a Striper or Kill a Striper save a Salmon

Next week at UC Davis the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, the Delta Science Program abd the NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service will host an independent panel of experts who will summarize the current state of knowledge on predation of Central Valley salmonids by Stripers and other fish.  The question of Striper Predation on Salmonids will be addressed and I wonder what will happen if the board supports the DFW’s original direction to curb the the predation by stripers on Salmon in low water conditions.   Its obvious when you look at an empty San Luis Reservoir that even in a non drought year, we will be robbing peter to pay paul no matter what happens.  There just isn’t enough water for fish and people. The low water conditions in San Luis according to a recent article by ABC news Merced,

Experts say two factors are to blame. One is the lack of rain since December, and the other is pumping restrictions that took effect this winter. Officials estimate about a million acre feet of water was lost because of the effort to protect fish, including the Delta smelt.

Seven hundred farmers in the Westlands Water district are operating at 20% or less because there is no water from San Luis Reservoir to water local crops.  San Luis is at a Record Low and  the effects on the striper poplulation in San Luis Reservoir is an unknown but it cant be good.  Shallow water and high heat create algae blooms which deplete the Oxygen in the water for one. Is it possible that the cycles of great and terrible fishing years are more related to water than fishing pressure?

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