Coho Salmon Return to Jenner Headlands!
Coho salmon once thrived in the misty coastal watersheds of the Sonoma Coast. Winter rains and summer fog kept these streams at Jenner Headlands running clear and cold beneath the towering redwoods — ideal conditions for Coho salmon and steelhead trout returning to their natal creeks to spawn after years living out at sea.
But after World War II, industrial logging stripped the landscape. The once-mighty forests were clear-cut, resulting in enormous amounts of sediment being deposited in the stream channels, burying the gravel beds that salmon needed for spawning. Logging debris and broken trees piled into massive log jams, blocking passage for fish swimming upstream to spawn. By 1965, with water temperatures rising past the 70-degree threshold for salmon survivability, Coho salmon were gone and steelhead had become a rarity. The last official survey in the Russian Gulch watershed to document Coho salmon was in 1965. Subsequent surveys showed no Coho at all.
In 2009, Sonoma Land Trust led a dedicated four-year effort with Sonoma County Ag + Open Space to acquire Jenner Headlands Preserve and set to work rehabilitating the redwood forest and restoring the creeks. The purchase was made possible through the support of the California Coastal Conservancy, California Wildlife Conservation Board, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, and the Forest Legacy Program.
When funding was threatened, The Wildlands Conservancy loaned $10.6 million to ensure the acquisition’s success. In 2013, Wildlands took title to the property — and five years later — opened the preserve to the public. By 2019, volunteers and staff had removed barriers, cleared log jams, and improved water quality — laying the groundwork for Russian Gulch’s recovery.
Coho salmon found at Jenner Headlands Preserve | photo by Corby Hines
This summer — during a routine water quality check — we caught a flash of silver: juvenile Coho salmon darting in the current. Back at the office, we pored over field guides and historic surveys. Could it really be Coho? Staff then returned to film the fish and make more observations. After posting a video of our observations on social media, a biologist from California Fish & Wildlife saw the video and contacted us. They requested permission to do a snorkel survey of the creek to officially document the presence of endangered Coho salmon and threatened steelhead trout. Surveyors found 239 young of the year Coho, which are fish that have been hated within the current year and are still less than one year old.
The remarkable return of Coho salmon in the Russian Gulch watershed isn’t just a biological milestone — it’s a testament to years of restoration and partnership. Sonoma Land Trust, Sonoma County Ag + Open Space, CDFW, and The Wildlands Conservancy, along with many funding and agency partners, have shown what’s possible in conservation and restoration. We will continue our efforts to monitor and restore the watershed in hopes of seeing a thriving population of salmon once again fulfilling their ancient ritual of returning upstream to spawn.