Kokanee
How to tell a kokanee from the fish it's most often mistaken for, and what you can keep in each BC region.
How to confirm it's a kokanee
- Bright silver sides with a steel-blue back
- No black spots on the back or tail (a few specks at most)
- Spawning fish turn red with a green head (late summer and fall)
Could it be something else?
Rainbow trout
Rainbow trout have black spots and a pink band.Mountain whitefish
Whitefish have a tiny mouth and large scales.
Rainbow trout have black spots and a pink band.Mountain whitefish
Whitefish have a tiny mouth and large scales.
Kokanee quotas by region
Each region's quota rule that covers kokanee, in the synopsis' words. Many waters set their own, lower quota or require release; check the water.
Region 1 · Vancouver Island
- Bass: unlimited. Crayfish: 25. Kokanee: 5 (none from streams). White sturgeon: catch and release only. Yellow perch: unlimited. (Haida Gwaii kokanee: 10, none from streams.)
Region 2 · Lower Mainland
- Bass: 20 (excluding Mill Lake). Crappie: 20. Crayfish: 25. Kokanee: 5 (none from streams). Whitefish: 15 (all species combined). White sturgeon: catch and release only.
Region 3 · Thompson-Nicola
- Bass: 0 quota, closed to fishing. Burbot: 2. Crayfish: 25. Kokanee: 5 (none from streams). Whitefish: 15 (all species combined). White sturgeon: catch and release only. Yellow perch: 0 quota, closed to fishing.
Region 4 · Kootenay
- Bass: 0 quota, closed to fishing. Crayfish: 25. Kokanee: 15 (none from streams), no more than 5 over 30 cm. Northern pike, walleye, yellow perch: 0 quota, closed to fishing (see tables for exceptions). White sturgeon: closed to fishing (no exceptions). Whitefish: 15 (all species combined).
Region 5 · Cariboo
- Bass: 0 quota, closed to all fishing. Kokanee: 5 (none from streams). Whitefish: 15 (all species combined). White sturgeon: closed to all fishing in the Fraser River watershed upstream of Williams Lake River; catch and release downstream of and including Williams Lake River; closed in the Fraser River downstream of and including Williams Lake River Sept 15-July 15.
Region 6 · Skeena
- Kokanee: 10 (none from streams). Whitefish: 15 (all species combined). White sturgeon: closed to all fishing.
Region 7A · Omineca
- Arctic grayling: catch and release only. Burbot: 5. Kokanee: 10 (none from streams). White sturgeon: closed to all fishing. Whitefish: 15 (all species combined).
Region 7B · Peace
- Arctic grayling: 2 (none under 30 cm and only 1 over 45 cm); release any size May 1-June 15 and all from Williston Lake and its tributaries. Goldeye: 10. Inconnu: 1. Kokanee: 10 (none from streams, except Peace River). Northern pike: 3 (only 1 over 90 cm). Walleye: 3 (only 1 over 70 cm); release all from streams Apr 1-May 15. Whitefish: 15 (all species combined). Yellow perch: 5.
Region 8 · Okanagan
- Bass: 0 quota, closed to fishing (see tables for exceptions). Burbot: 2. Crappie: 20. Crayfish: 25. Kokanee: 5 (none from streams). Walleye: 8. Whitefish: 15 (all species combined). Yellow perch: 0 quota, closed to fishing (see tables for exceptions).
Waters with their own kokanee rules
Cultus Lake · Skagit River · Alta Lake · Kawkawa Lake · Kootenay Lake · Columbia River · Peace River · Pine River · Kalamalka Lake · Skaha Lake · Osoyoos Lake · Wood Lake