Setline survey for juvenile white sturgeon to begin Sept. 30 on Lake Roosevelt

SPOKANE - Beginning Sept. 30, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW), the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation, and the Spokane Tribe of Indians will conduct a setline survey for juvenile white sturgeon in the upper portion of Lake Roosevelt in northeast Washington. The setline survey overlaps with the recreational sturgeon fishing season and sampling will occur in areas where anglers commonly fish. Anglers should take note of the survey schedule to avoid any inconvenience due to sampling activities.

The survey will begin in the Rickey Point area and work progressively upstream to the Little Dalles.

Week of Sept. 30, 2024:

• Mon.-Tue.: Rickey Point to Colville River.
• Tue.-Wed.: Colville River to Highway 395 bridge.
• Wed.-Fri.: Singers Bay to Pingston Creek/Nancy Creek.

Week of Oct. 7, 2024:

• Mon.-Tue.: Pingston Creek/Nancy Creek to Marcus Island.
• Tue.-Wed.: Marcus Island to Evans.
• Wed.-Thu.: Evans to North Gorge.
• Thu.-Fri.:  North Gorge to Little Dalles.

“This survey will give fishery co-managers important information about growth and survival of young fish in the population,” said Chris Donley, Eastern Region fish program manager. “We ask anglers to avoid setline buoys to prevent disturbance of sampling gear.” 

To conduct the survey, the research team will use 600-foot setlines marked with buoys at each end. Each of the four research boats will deploy 10 setlines per day, leaving them to fish overnight and retrieving them the next day. Researchers will only fish the setlines on weekdays. Survey crews will make efforts to be considerate of other boaters and anglers, such as minimizing their boat wake when near other boats. 

Each fall, fishery managers conduct juvenile (ages 0-4) sturgeon monitoring in this portion of Lake Roosevelt. Harvestable-sized sturgeon are not captured in this sampling due to the small hook size used to target younger fish. The setline gear is exclusive to sturgeon and does not result in bycatch of other fish species. The survey should have minimal impact on recreational angling success.

Anglers can find more information about Lake Roosevelt and white sturgeon fishing seasons on the WDFW white sturgeon webpage. 

The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife works to preserve, protect and perpetuate fish, wildlife and ecosystems while providing sustainable fish and wildlife recreational and commercial opportunities.