Department of Commerce
NOAA Fisheries Service
- Southwest Regional Office
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 18, 2005
CONTACT: |
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Special Agent Joe Giordano, OLE
707-575-6073
Special Agent Steve Meyer, OLE
916-930-3618
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NOAA FISHERIES SERVICE OFFERS $5000 REWARD
SANTA CRUZ, Calif. – The NOAA Fisheries Service Office for
Law Enforcement is seeking the public's assistance and offering
a $5,000 reward for information leading to the conviction of the
person or persons responsible for the death of federally protected
steelhead in a trout hatchery near Santa Cruz.
Federal law enforcement agents from NOAA Fisheries Service were
called to Monterey Salmon and Trout Project fish hatchery in Davenport,
Calif., today to investigate the apparent poisoning of 12 steelhead
trout in a freshwater holding tank. Steelhead trout in central
California are protected under the federal Endangered Species Act
(ESA).
"This is more than just a minor act of vandalism or prank," said
Special Agent Joe Giordano, NOAA Fisheries Service Office for
Law Enforcement - Southwest Division. "This is a serious
federal offense and we intend to apprehend and prosecute whoever
committed this crime."
Anyone with information concerning this incident should call Special
Agent Giordano at the number listed above or the Office for Law
Enforcement hotline at toll-free, 1-800-853-1964.
The steelhead were originally transported from San Lorenzo River
to the hatchery to be used as a breeding stock in re-populating
the native species to the various streams within the watershed.
Steelhead in the San Lorenzo River are listed as "threatened" under
the ESA.
The penalty for "taking" a listed threatened species
under the ESA is up to $13,200 and up to six months in jail.
Steelhead, or Oncorhynchus mykiss, are the same species as rainbow
trout, however they are anadromous, which means that they are born
in fresh water but migrate to the ocean to reach adulthood, before
returning to freshwater to reproduce the next generation. Their
behavior is similar to salmon as they travel up freshwater streams
from the ocean to spawn. Unlike salmon, steelhead don’t always
die after spawning. In fact most return to the ocean to continue
their marine life phase
NOAA Fisheries Service is dedicated to protecting and preserving
our nation's living marine resources through scientific
research, management, enforcement and the conservation of marine
mammals
and other protected marine species and their habitat.
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