The Salmoncam is operational. Tune in! 10 minute limit and only three viewers at a time.
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Butte Creek's Incredible Wild Spring Run Salmon....The Last, Best Run of Wild Salmon in California
Friends of Butte Creek featured on front page of the San Francisco Chronicle!
The Monday, May 26, 2008 issue of the San Francisco Chronicle featured the article Salmon resurgence in Butte County. Here's a snippet:
The number of spawning fish returning from the ocean to Butte Creek increased 10 percent from 2006 to 2007, Harthorn said. By the look of things, he said, even more fish are returning this year.
But the most dramatic resurgence occurred over the past 10 years, when an average of almost 10,000 salmon a year swam back up the creek, according to Harthorn, who co-founded Friends of Butte Creek in 1999 after years battling farming interests and Pacific Gas and Electric over its DeSabla-Centerville plant.
Read the entire article here, and view an image of the front page here.
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Butte Creek supports the largest run of Wild, Naturally Spawned Spring Run Chinook Salmon in California
Over $30,000,000 (see Restoration Handout) has been spent on improved fish passage in the lower watershed. Much of the best salmon habitat is blocked by Centerville Head Dam and still has reduced flows (71% to 82% reduction in summer) and increased water temperature below the dam. By all measures wild Butte Creek Spring Run have recovered, averaging over 10,000 salmon per
year for the last twelve years (see Spring Run Population), while hatchery Fall Run stocks have collapsed. This years run is not so good. Tagged stray Butte Creek Spring Run have shown
up in Battle Creek, Clear Creek, and the Feather River Hatchery. Steelhead trout are not doing well at all.
(see fish report) Their habitat is greatly reduced by hydroelectric operations. Other forest
and aquatic creatures have also benefited including Bald Eagles like the one
in the photo, seen last May.
Check out the interactive watershed map of Butte Creek, provided by River Network and IMRivers. You can view the major features of the creek, including bridges, dams, flumes and trails. View the map here.
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Butte Creek Salmon Cam
Watch a 60 second clip (8.6 mb)of the
first exclusive underwater video of Butte Creek's 2004 spring run salmon. You
can order the complete DVD with music at SalmonCam.org.
Every sale from the website contributes $5 to the Friends of Butte Creek and
$5 to the Salmonid Restoration Federation.
Friends of Butte Creek T-shirts and hats
Friends of Butte Creek T-shirts and hats featuring this beautiful Lenn Goldmann print are still available. You can buy them directly for $20 by sending us an email to friends@buttecreek.org.
Target Inc. vows to eliminate all farmed salmon from their food stores to demonstrate their committment to the environment! Read the story.
Best Fishes and Happy New Year! Get your New Year'smerchandise. Click the photo to enlarge the image of the selection available. Help support our endangered salmon. ______________________
The final carcass count is in for the 2009 Butte Creek spring run. Only 2,561 salmon were counted, the lowest number in 12 years. With the incredibly low number of fall run returning this year, Sacramento Valley salmon are heading for extinction. We can not let this happen!!!
Salmon Water Now has a new video
Check it out!
"The Rivers of a Lost Coast", a widely acclaimed independent flyfishing movie about the "way rivers used to be", was a big success. This incredible film was shown at Sierra Nevada Brewery Big Room, Nov. 8th. The Sacramento River Preservation Trust and Friends of Butte Creek hosted nearly 200 guest for a buffet dinner and this great movie. Thank you all for your support and all the sponsors, Sierra Nevada Brewing Company and Chico Fly Fishers, and donors, Chico Fly Shop, Fish First!, Sierra Stream and Mountain, Geoff Fricker, The Goldsmith, and Friends of Butte Creek.
Over 250 friends joined us for the SYRCL Wild and Scenic Environmental Film Festival On Tour at Sierra Nevada Brewing Company, in the Big Room. It was an exciting evening of film and fun, great prizes, silent auction, and special guests, MaMuse! The event was a great success for the awareness and membership campaigns for Friends of Butte Creek. Check out the film summaries. Thanks to all the great sponsors. Check out what you missed in the 2009 program.
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The State of Salmon,"Can we let these iconic fish go extinct?" Read the article by Executive Director, Allen Harthorn
The 2009 run is estimated at 2000 springers by DFG. Local snorklers estimate closer to 3000. Final numbers will be available after the carcass count in November.
The Department of Fish and Game and NOAA Fisheries again rescued salmon below Highway 99 and the Durham Mutual Dam June 30. Only 26 fish, compared to 350 last year, were captured and transported to Parrott/Phelan Dam in the Canyon. Read the continuing saga in the Chico ER.
NOAA Fisheries releases important Biological Opinion for salmon, steelhead and green sturgeon in the Sacramento San Joaquin river systems. Read the press release here.
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How cool is that! Three degrees to be exact!
New temperature models show huge benefit to Spring Run Salmon by flow and operation improvements on DeSabla-Centerville Hydro Project. See the data and the highlights.
Restoration Efforts Continue in Lower Butte Creek
DWR, Ducks Unlimited and many others continue the efforts to provide better upstream and downstream passage for Butte Creek salmonids. These projects should make the Butte Creek salmon and steelhead runs even more vibrant! The three DWR facilities, the Sutter Bypass pumps, Willow Slough and Weir 2 need funding and immediate repair. The fish are in constant jeopardy in this area! Check out the website at DWR.
Rivers of a Lost Coast is a widely acclaimed independent flyfishing movie about the "way rivers used to be", is coming to town! This incredible film will be shown at Sierra Nevada Brewery Big Room, Nov. 8th. The Sacramento River Preservation Trust and Friends of Butte Creek invite you to share the buffet dinner, your favorite Sierra Nevada beverages, and a small silent auction to benefit the two river organizations. (11/08/09)
The spreadsheet with estimates for the population of Butte Creek Spring Run Chinook Salmon Population, from 1954 through 2008, is now online. Included is a timeline of restoration efforts which have contributed to the recovery. (05/23/09)
The Monday, May 26, 2008 issue of the San Francisco Chronicle featured the article 
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Here's a 4/23/08 shot of the surge of "springers" that have entered Butte Creek last year. A week later, 5/1, there are lots more! 
