RIDGEFIELD – The 2026 Northern Pikeminnow Sport-Reward Fishery will open May 1, offering anglers the chance to earn cash while helping protect vulnerable salmon and steelhead in the Columbia and Snake rivers. The fishery will be open daily through Sept. 30 at most locations.
Funded by the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA), the sport-reward program pays recreational anglers to catch predatory northern pikeminnow – a native fish that consumes millions of juvenile salmon and steelhead in the Columbia River basin each year.
“The sport-reward fishery plays an important role in salmon and steelhead recovery efforts,” said Eric Winther, Pikeminnow Program Manager with the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW). “For over three decades, anglers have logged more than a million trips and removed nearly six million northern pikeminnow from the Columbia and Snake rivers, reducing predation on young salmon by up to 40% compared to pre-program levels.”
The goal of the program is not to eradicate native northern pikeminnow, but to remove 10-20% of the larger, predator-sized northern pikeminnow each year. Removing these fish helps shift the population toward smaller individuals, which consume…
Click here to read more on the WDFW website.