The Wild Steelheader, 6-10-17

June 10, 2017

Public lands are on our minds this week as we mark the 111th anniversary of the Antiquities Act. Since its signing in 1906 by President and conservationist Theodore Roosevelt the Antiquities Act has been a bipartisan tool used by 16 presidents, half Republicans, half Democrats to better protect the nation's resources that have outstanding historical, cultural, and scientific values. Far from a tool used to "lock up land," the act is used to protect lands that are already public, protecting uses such as hunting and fishing.What do the Antiquities Act, and national monuments, have to do with wild steelhead? Plenty. From the famed Garcia River in California to the Misty Fjords of Alaska, a lot of steelhead habitat - or the headwaters of their habitat - are now protected under national monument designations. Today, national monuments, and public lands in general, are targeted for downsizing or elimination, drastic reductions in funding, and intensive resource extraction. Many wild steelhead waters hang in the balance. Please join us and stand up for our national monuments to safeguard our wild steelhead and sporting heritage.         Thursday, June 8, marked the 111th Anniversary of the Antiquities Act. This important conservation tool has been used by almost every president since its inception to protect millions of acres of lands that are already public. Many of those lands are vital to steelhead. Fishing and hunting are allowed in national monuments where these activities predate the designation. There are currently nine national monuments from California to Alaska that encompass steelhead habitat, protect the riparian zone adjacent to steelhead habitat, or protect the marine environment where steelhead are found. Learn more about the importance of the Antiquities Act to steelhead and then stand up for national monuments.         The Department of the Interior is currently taking comments on national monuments and the Antiquities Act, specifically to consider whether some monuments should be downsized or eliminated. National monuments are a unique  form of protection for lands that are already public. Far from  "locking up land," these designations protect outstanding historic, cultural, and landscape values as well as valid existing rights for mining and energy development and uses such as hunting, fishing, recreation and grazing. The Antiquities Act is an important tool for conservation because it keeps our public land like it is, preventing changes that would negatively impact our hunting and fishing heritage. Stand up for your national monuments and public lands today!         This week we move back to biology and look at the life cycle of juvenille steelhead. Learn the difference between eggs, alevins, fry and parr. While the terms may sound simple, they are important descriptors of an incredibly diverse life history. It's this life history complexity and anadromous capability that have allowed wild steelhead to overcome factors such as drought, unfavorable ocean conditions, even over-fishing, and rebound in numbers once habitat conditions become more favorable.