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Each year, ODFW stocks millions of trout in dozens of reservoirs, lakes and ponds throughout the state. You can use the search and filter functions to search the stocking schedule for specific locations and dates. The schedule is subject to change without notice; see individual waterbody listings in the Recreation Report for updates.
Need to figure out controlled hunts, find a place to clam, learn how to fish or get directions to a wildlife area? We've got information on all that and more, straight from ODFW biologists and other accomplished hunters, anglers and wildlife watchers. Header image by Dave Budeau
Features: The purple varnish clam is named for the purple hue found inside the clam and the shiny varnish over the brown color outside the shell. It is oval in shape and is relatively flat with a prominent ligament near the hinge. Habitat: These clams can be found in cobble to muddy substrate. Technique: Purple varnish clams are found in very high densities. Limits are 72 a day. Learn more here before getting started clamming. See Oregon Sport Fishing Regulations for information on the daily catch limits for bay clams. How to dig purple varnish clams (video)
Features: Circular in shape and 1.5-2.5 inches across. Identified by concentric lines and radiating ridges. Longer lived and less abundant than cockles. Habitat: High salinity areas of sand, mud, gravel, or rock. Harvest them in Tillamook, Netarts, Yaquina, and Coos bays. Techniques: These clams can be found in rocky nearshore areas within 6 inches of the surface. Using a rake for these clams is the best harvest method. Learn more here before getting started clamming. See Oregon Sport Fishing Regulations for information on the daily catch limits for bay clams. How to dig for little neck clams (video)
ROSEBURG, Ore. – Learn how to hunt waterfowl or sharpen your skills in one of three waterfowl hunting workshops in Southern Oregon offered by the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. ODFW hunter education specialists are teaching the workshops: Oct. 3: Klamath Falls, 6 p.m. – 9 p.m., Klamath Wildlife…
NEWPORT, Ore. – The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife is holding two public meetings to discuss the commercial black and blue rockfish and nearshore fisheries. The meetings will be held in person with virtual or phone-in options Sept. 9 in Port Orford and Sept. 11 in Tillamook. ODFW commercial…
CORVALLIS, Ore. — The Oregon Hatchery Research Center Board will meet in Corvallis on Tuesday, June 17 from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at the Oregon State University, Nash Hall Room 032, 2820 SW Campus Way. In addition to the regularly scheduled items, the agenda includes OHRC research updates, an…
Features: Unlike gaper clams, softshell clams have no gape on their neck end. Softshell clams have a spoon like projection on the left valve, this feature is called a chondrophore. Habitat: Brackish, muddy areas all along Oregon's coastline. Find softshells 12-18" depth. Technique: Softshells can be harvested by digging with either a shovel or clam gun. As the name suggests, they have soft or thin shells which are easy to break. Although a clam with a broken shell is still good to eat, sharp edges of a broken shell can be very dangerous. Until you've refined your shoveling skills you…
CORVALLIS, Ore . — The Oregon Hatchery Research Center Board will meet virtually via Zoom on Wednesday, Sept. 3 from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. In addition to the regularly scheduled items, the agenda includes a review of a proposal for use of the remaining OHRC Research Fund. The meeting…
Wild turkeys are not native to Oregon but were first successfully introduced in 1961. Since then more than 10,000 turkeys have been transplanted to locations all over Oregon and continue to thrive in most game units through the state. Turkey hunting is a popular activity in Oregon and has grown more than ten-fold since a statewide spring season opened in 1987. Oregon’s six-week spring turkey season is among the most liberal in the United States. Hunters have an opportunity to take up to three gobblers during the spring season and up to two birds during the fall, one of which…
Features: Identified by its prominent radiating ridges. Habitat: Cockles are "hard shelled" clams. Their protective, stout shells and short siphons mean that they do not have to bury as deeply as other common bay clams. Good cockle beds will often have cockles right on top of the sand on a good tide. They prefer sandy areas with high salinity, but can be found at many types of tideflats. Technique: The best clamming is during low/minus tides. Because these clams are so near the surface, you rake, rather than dig, for them. A four prong gardening rake is perfect for raking…
Features: Dungeness crab can sometimes be confused with rock or other crab species. However, it is easily identified by its white-tipped claws and reddish-brown to purple color. Habitat: Adult Dungeness crab forage on a number of fish and invertebrate species. They can be found throughout the sandy and muddy areas in the shallowest parts of lower estuaries all the way to depths of almost 1,500 feet. Techniques: There are many kinds of crab catchers – from crab pots and rings, to traps you can cast with a fishing rod. You can easily crab from a dock in many coastal bays…
NEWPORT, Ore. – The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife is hosting a Feb. 2 public meeting beginning at 6 p.m. to get input on the number and timing of fixed and back-up dates for the central Oregon coast spring all-depth Pacific halibut season. The meeting is in the conference…
ENTERPRISE, Ore. – ODFW, in coordination with co-managers, will reopen harvest of wild (adipose-intact) fall Chinook salmon in the Snake River effective Saturday, Oct. 4. The reopening follows a temporary closure implemented in September to ensure fisheries remained within agreed harvest limits. During the closure, managers continued to monitor run…
Features: Gaper clams have large "neck" housing the two siphons that protrude above the substrate surface when feeding. Protective leathery plates are found just below the siphon tips and feel rough to the touch. Gapers are unable to retract their neck entirely into the shell, producing a "gape" in the shell. It is common for algae to grow on their necks and gaper pea crabs to dwell inside the shell with the gaper clam. Habitat: Gapers can be found in high salinity sandy and/or muddy areas in most of Oregon's larger estuaries. Tillamook, Netarts, Yaquina, and Coos are favorite bays…
