Steelhead in Gilroy will soon get a second chance—but not without a well-meaning shock.
Volunteers with Herman Garcia-founded Coastal Habitat Education and Environmental Restoration (CHEER) are planning to meet alongside state and federal fish and wildlife officials June 11 at within the Uvas Creek basin to use electroshock-and-replace steelhead whose habitat may soon be dry in coming weeks, according to California Department of Fish and Wildlife information officer Andrew Hughan.
“We’re going to do as much as we can to rescue as many as we can and save the species,” Hughan sad, adding that the shock does not harm the fish.
According to organizers, the fish will be transported from the location at the intersection of Uvas Creek and Highway 152 using an aerated rescue drunk to a habitat more conducive to survival given the drought conditions, likely the Pajaro River in Watsonville.
Hughan said the group expects to see 200 to 300 threatened baby steelhead. Hughan said he expects to see dozens of similar rescues in the state if the drought continues.Â
“The fish are stuck, and we have to to what we can to help them,” he said.
Garcia said the effort dovetails into his approach for a “seamless system of care” for the watershed. According to Hughan, the Uvas Creek habitat where the steelhead are located may likely be dry in coming weeks, and the steelhead may otherwise not survive.
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