Sammamish sees record Kokanee returns

As a member community of the Lake Sammamish Kokanee Work Group, Sammamish has long supported regional efforts to improve the native Kokanee salmon population in Lake Sammamish. Kokanee move from streams before spending three or four years in Lake Sammamish.

The adult fish then return in late autumn to spawn in the streams where they were born. Official counts from this year’s kokanee returns indicate the highest levels in almost 10 years–over 8,000 fish. For comparison, returns have averaged fewer than 400 fish over the past eight years.

Much of the success within Sammamish can be linked to improved access to spawning habitat in local streams including Ebright Creek and Zackuse Creek. In recent years, Sammamish Public Works replaced culverts where these streams crossed East Lake Sammamish Parkway.

Removing these barriers opened critical upstream spawning habitat to returning fish. An equally critical part of the kokanee success involves the countless hours Sammamish residents volunteer toward the Kokanee Work Group, Trout Unlimited, Snoqualmie Tribe and other organizations. Individuals participate in fish counts, assist remotely located egg incubators, help with the release of hatchery fry, and participate in various restoration programs throughout the Lake Sammamish watershed.