By mapping the DNA of steelhead on the Skeena River, researchers will be able to help anglers key in on the specific tributaries of this popular river system.

A large glass case in the Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks (MELP) office in Smithers, houses the taxidermist mounts of two huge male steelhead. On August 1, 1998, the gill nets of the Silver Token, skippered by Robert Johnson, brought in these spectacular fish — both weighing over 40 pounds — at the mouth of the Skeena River. Either fish would have easily broken the world record fly-caught fish of 33 lbs, which was caught by Karl Mauser on the Kispiox, or of the gear-caught fish of 36 lbs. But which Skeena tributary was the ultimate destination for these monster steelhead? Was it the Kispiox, famous for its long-lived huge fish, or the Babine, known for the quantity of its more than 20 lb fish? Questions like these will be increasingly easy to answer thanks to ongoing DNA research being conducted by MELP and Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) on the Skeena.