DWR stocks record number of fish across Utah in 2023

Midway State Fish Hatchery stocks 24,000 3-inch kokanee salmon into Weber River inlet to Rockport Reservoir Photo: DWR // Mark Hadley

In 2023 The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources released 10,634,431 fish, weighing a total of 1,171,098 pounds, into 604 different locations across Utah.

SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources (DWR) has significantly increased fish stocking in 2023, introducing over 10 million fish into the state’s waterbodies to enhance fishing experiences and bolster native fish populations.

DWR released 10,634,431 fish, weighing a total of 1,171,098 pounds, into 604 different locations across Utah. This figure marks a substantial increase from the 8.2 million fish stocked in 2020, aligning closely with the numbers from 2019 and 2021, which saw 10 and 9.6 million fish introduced, respectively.

Amidst drought challenges, DWR has shifted its focus to stocking fewer but larger fish in certain areas to improve survival rates. Simultaneously, the division is increasing the number of smaller fish in locations with higher growth potential.

Dating back to 1871, fish stocking in Utah has evolved from transporting fish by train to sophisticated hatchery operations. Currently, DWR operates 13 hatcheries statewide. A significant portion of the fish stocked in 2023, approximately 1,063,571 pounds, originated from these facilities.

“The original hatcheries were really impounded streams where we put fry that we got from the federal government,” DWR Aquatic Section Assistant Chief Craig Schaugaard said. “We opened our first traditional fish hatchery — where we produced our own eggs and used raceways like we have today — in Murray in 1899.”

Schaugaard went on to say that “Stocking is a crucial management tool that we use to provide Utahns with the numbers and species of fish they desire. Stocking fish helps ensure that the public has a great fishing experience. It also helps in the recovery of threatened or endangered fish. June suckers were downlisted from endangered to threatened under the Endangered Species Act in 2021 because of recovery efforts, which included stocking.”