East Region February 2025

Nick Myatt, Region Manager

Golden eagle research in northeast

District wildlife staff in Wallowa County, in partnership with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Nature Conservancy, began a pilot project to study the survival, movement, and reproductive success of golden eagles. During the pilot phase, ODFW staff tested methods of capture as well as telemetry units to determine feasibility for a longer-term study.

The first capture event during this pilot project took place in mid-December 2024.

USFWS provided four GPS units for this pilot year. The data from golden eagles captured in northeast Oregon during this pilot phase will go toward a larger West-wide study led by USFWS. If funding is secured staff intend to put many more units on birds in northeast Oregon for more localized research.

Very few people in the U.S. have the certification and experience necessary to handle eagles. Luckily, Matt Stuber, a biologist with the USFWS in Oregon volunteered his time and expertise to lead the capture and handling of these birds. In addition to ODFW staff, several other USFWS employees came out to help as well as a FS biologist and staff from The Nature Conservancy. Two of our capture sites were on Nature Conservancy lands, they have been key partners for this pilot year, offering places to trap and local expertise.

McKay Creek fish passage update

During 2020, fisheries co-managers, ODFW and Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR), met to discuss the possibility of starting to work toward fish passage at McKay Creek Reservoir Dam. These efforts included an evaluation of the lower six miles of habitat below the McKay Creek Reservoir Dam. A plan was made to lower the adult weir at the mouth of McKay Creek in September 2023, to allow anadromous fish their first access the lower six miles of habitat since 1995.

Since the weir was lowered in 2023 there have been a total of 117 redds counted in the six miles of habitat in McKay Creek below the dam. Of the 117 redds, 103 were counted in the fall from fall Chinook and Coho spawning and 14 were from steelhead spawning. CTUIR also radio tagged 50 spring Chinook at the mouth of the Umatilla River to determine how many would migrate into McKay Creek prior to the adult weir being raised. Of the 41 that made it to the mouth, three entered McKay Creek for a portion of time prior to exiting and migrating further upstream. Fisheries managers will be repeating the spring Chinook radio tag surveys for two more years, as well as performing releases of PIT tagged hatchery steelhead below the dam in the lower six miles to perform comparative survival estimates with other hatchery steelhead releases.

Fisheries managers plan to continue to work with the BOR on possible fish passage at the McKay Creek Reservoir Dam and are conducting other studies both upstream and downstream of McKay Creek Reservoir Dam.

CWD surveillance and monitoring

The 2024-25 season for Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) surveillance and monitoring runs from July 1, 2024, to June 31, 2025. Major accomplishments to date include hiring six temporary field staff through general funds, standardizing sample collection protocols by the addition of a Survey123 form and barcoded collection kits and beginning contract work with Cornell University to perform risk assessment and sample optimization modeling. Total samples collected as of January 16, 2025 (n=3991) have already surpassed that of the prior year (n=3472) with 6 months remaining in the sampling season.

The increase in sample collection during this season can be attributed to multiple factors. ODFW has 47 taxidermists and meat processors in the state collecting and submitting CWD samples for testing, with a compensation of $10 per sample. Sample collection has also benefitted from increased relationships with the Oregon Department of Transportation, county and city public works departments, and APHIS Wildlife Services staff for the collection of non-salvaged roadkill. During this time, staff also placed two additional drop-off containers for deer and elk heads, bringing the total number of drop-off locations to 21 (19 ODFW offices, 2 tribal natural resource offices). Major check stations in central and eastern Oregon were also operational for one weekend each during deer and elk season, respectively. While check station locations for the deer season remained the same as the previous year (Prineville, The Dalles, Elgin, and Baker City), an additional check station in Ukiah was added for the elk season. Overall, check station performance surpassed that of the prior year, with a total of 905 samples collected compared to 638 samples collected in the 2023-24 season.

Education and outreach for CWD also increased during the 2024-25 season with more than $62,000 spent on paid outreach methods. Items produced through this spend included digital ads served on mobile apps and browsers, digital ads served within streaming audio, display ads on websites, targeted emails to Oregon individuals that used certain keywords to research CWD online, radio spots, and print advertising in ODFW's hunting regulations. The paid outreach efforts also helped to secure a series of public service announcements, news stories, and live television coverage for the 2024 campaign. Additionally, staff continue to provide educational talks to various audiences including Oregon State Police, university classes, local Oregon Hunters Association chapters, tribal partners, and local sportsman shows.