Managing fish populations

A partial snapshot of how the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife manages fish and shellfish in the state.

Hatchery employee holding Chinook salmon
Photo by WDFW

  • Marine Protected Areas

    To protect and preserve a variety of marine fish, shellfish, and habitats, WDFW has established marine reserves at several sites in Puget Sound. 

  • Fish hatcheries

    For more than a century, WDFW hatcheries have produced fish for harvest.

  • North of Falcon

    Each year state, federal and tribal fishery managers gather to plan the Northwest's recreational and commercial salmon fisheries.

  • Columbia River fisheries and management

    The Columbia River is home to many fisheries across a wide swath of the state; learn more about how those fisheries are managed.

  • Puget Sound Chinook Resource Management Plan

    WDFW and tribal co-managers are developing a revised version of a plan to guide the next decade of Chinook salmon fishing in the Puget Sound region.

  • Steelhead fishery management

    Find out how WDFW is supporting steelhead recovery through robust steelhead management, guided by our Statewide Steelhead Management Plan.

  • Salmon Conservation and Reporting Engine (SCoRE)

    Find up-to-date information and context for statewide efforts to protect and conserve salmon and steelhead.

  • SalmonScape

    This mapping tool delivers the science that helps recovery planners prioritize restoration activities offering the greatest benefit to fish.

  • Forage fish ecology in Washington State

    Despite good information on the distribution of spawning beaches, our understanding of the ecology and protection needs for these species is very limited.

  • Passive Integrated Transponder (PIT) tagging

    PIT tags are tiny, battery-free microchips implanted in fish that let researchers automatically track individual movements and survival across Washington’s river systems.

  • Coded Wire Tag Program

    Coded wire tags are used to help assess abundance and catch rates on certain populations of salmon and steelhead.

  • Warmwater fish program

    This program enhances fishing opportunities for warmwater game fish in Washington while protecting native species.

  • Fish Traps and Surveys Database

    The Fish Traps and Surveys database (FTS) was designed as a repository for raw, unexpanded data collected during spawning ground surveys and from adult traps. These data are used to generate estimates of escapement and other metrics of salmonid abundance.

  • Dingell-Johnson Act

    Information about the Dingell-Johnson Sport Fish Restoration Act, which provides funding to state fish and wildlife agencies to support recreational fishing.

  • White sturgeon

    Information about white sturgeon fisheries, quotas, and regulations.