From the above, it is only reasonable to conclude that there is a low probability of longfin smelt entering Brisbane Lagoon through the box culverts and remaining in the vicinity in significant numbers during the proposed site development.Longfin smelt listed as a California threatened species in 2009, is a small schooling fish that inhabits the freshwater section of the lower Delta and has been observed from south San Francisco Bay to the Delta, with the bulk of the San Francisco Bay population occupying the region between the Carquinez Straight and the Delta (CDFW, 2009; Miller and Lea, 1972). They have been collected in large numbers in Montezuma slough, Suisun Bay and near the Pittsburg and Contra Costa power plants. In the fall, adults from San Francisco and San Pablo Bays migrate to fresher water in the Delta to spawn. The spawning habits of longfin smelt are similar to the delta smelt and both species are known to school together. Larval stages are known to inhabit Suisun Bay and move south within the Bay-Delta as they grow larger in April and May (CDFW, 2009; Ganssle 1966). The larvae are pelagic and found in the upper layers of the water column. Data (CDFW, 2006) indicate that longfin smelt are present to a small extent in the Central Bay and are may be seasonally transient within the Brisbane Lagoon and shoreline of San Francisco Bay.

Green Sturgeon (Acipenser medirostris) Federally Threatened.Green sturgeon is the most widely distributed member and the most marine-oriented of North American sturgeons, entering rivers only to spawn. Adults (age 15 yrs. +) of the southern “distinct population segment” (DPS) of green sturgeon enter the Sacramento River in winter and spawn in spring and early summer; juveniles remain in fresh and estuarine waters for one to four years and then begin to migrate out to the sea (Moyle et al 1995, Moyle 2002, Israel et al. 2004). Sub-adult green sturgeon present in San Francisco Bay in summer are probably a mix of Northern and Southern DPSs (NOAA 2005b), although most of them are of the southern DPS (Israel et al. 2009). The summertime aggregations in San Pablo Bay, and in estuaries in general, are not associated with spawning (Lindley et al. 2008, Israel et al. 2009).

Green sturgeon is the most widely distributed member and the most marine-oriented of North American sturgeons, entering rivers only to spawn. Adults (age 15 yrs. +) of the southern “distinct population segment” (DPS) of green sturgeon enter the Sacramento River in winter and spawn in spring and early summer; juveniles remain in fresh and estuarine waters for one to four years and then begin to migrate out to the sea (Moyle et al 1995, Moyle 2002, Israel et al. 2004). Sub-adult green sturgeon present in San Francisco Bay in summer are probably a mix of Northern and Southern DPSs (NOAA 2005b), although most of them are of the southern DPS (Israel et al. 2009). The summertime aggregations in San Pablo Bay, and in estuaries in general, are not associated with spawning (Lindley et al. 2008, Israel et al. 2009).