Contact: Harry Morse, DFG Office of Communications, (916) 651-1173?ĮNimbus Hatchery Visitor Center (916) 358-2820

Steelhead trout spawning is underway at Nimbus Hatchery. Department of Fish and Game (DFG) employees spawn steelhead each Wednesday at the Nimbus Hatchery located just outside Sacramento in Rancho Cordova. Spawning is expected to last through March.
Visitors to the Nimbus Hatchery Visitor Center can watch as hatchery workers select fish for spawning and the egg taking process from inside the visitor's center from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. each Wednesday.
"Spawning is in full swing and we expect to meet our goal of 450,000 eggs taken sometime in March," said Hatchery Manager Terry West.
Each year hatchery workers artificially spawn over 200 steelhead to assure future steelhead returns on the American River. An estimated 3,500 to 4,000 adult steelhead return each year.
The eggs are incubated for 60 days. The fish spend a year under hatchery care and grow to six to 10 inches in length. They are released at various locations to complete the 125-mile journey to the ocean. Most spend two years in the ocean growing 7 to 12 pounds before returning to spawn. Less than 2 percent of the nearly half-million young fish released annually survive and return to spawn.
Steelhead trout are native to the American River. The completion of Nimbus and Folsom Dam prevented salmon and steelhead from reaching historic spawning areas. The hatchery was built in 1955 by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation to mitigate for losses of steelhead and salmon. The hatchery is operated by DFG and funded by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation.
Steelheads are highly prized by anglers for their fighting abilities and table fare. The majority of the winter steelhead fishing on the American River takes place within the greater Sacramento urban area. This urban fishery provides thousands of hours of angling recreation and delicious meals for area anglers.

For further assistance, contact the DFG Office of Communications http://www.dfg.ca.gov/news/contact.html