Investigation into illegal releases of invasive sport fish in Cultus Lake, B.C.

Russell Salisbury admires a smallmouth bass while fishing with Russell Duncan, left, both of Cary, N.C., and Maine guide Sue Hurd, on Big Lake near Grand Lake Stream, Maine, on May 31, 2006. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)

CHILLIWACK — The BC Conservation Officer Service is seeking public help as it investigates illegal releases of smallmouth bass, a prized sport fish, into Cultus Lake in Chilliwack, B.C.

The service says its investigations suggest “multiple instances” of the invasive predatory species being released into the lake since 2017.

It says smallmouth bass aren’t native to the lake and pose a serious threat to species such as the endangered Cultus Lake sockeye salmon and the threatened pygmy sculpin.

It says smallmouth bass prey on juvenile salmon and other native species.

Sgt. Todd Hunter, with the service’s aquatic invasive species unit, says transporting and releasing invasive fish is illegal and anyone with information about the releases should call the poaching and polluting hotline.

The Fisheries Department says smallmouth are only native in Canada to Lake Superior and the Great Lakes — St Lawrence system, but have been widely introduced elsewhere for recreational fishing, including southern B.C.

Smallmouth bass fishing tournaments in the United States can have hundreds of thousands of dollars in prize money, while the Fort Frances Canadian Bass Championship in Ontario had more than $70,000 in prizes this year.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 19, 2025.