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Read more about the article Drought prevents salmon from returning to hatchery
A chinook salmon waits to be let into the holding pond from the Tulalip Bay fish ladder.

Drought prevents salmon from returning to hatchery

A chinook salmon waits to be let into the holding pond from the Tulalip Bay fish ladder.
Chinook salmon wait to be let into the holding pond from the Tulalip Bay fish ladder.

Tribal fishing in Tulalip Bay closed in July because a thermal barrier kept many salmon from entering the bay, and low flows prevented others from swimming upriver.

Tulalip Tribes closed fishing in the bay July 22, and the state restricted the sport chinook fishery in the “bubble” at the mouth of the bay to catch-and-release as of July 31.

Normally, chinook salmon return via the Skykomish River to the state’s Wallace River Hatchery, where they are spawned for the Tulalip Tribes’ and state’s joint hatchery program. But this year, along with other rivers in the region, the Skykomish is setting records for the lowest flows ever recorded.

“Wallace River Hatchery doesn’t have enough fish,” said Mike Crewson, Tulalip salmon enhancement scientist. “Escapement is really low. The fish cannot make it up there in the shallow water. They’re all holding down in the lower pools of the Skykomish and Snohomish mainstems. They don’t want to come into Tulalip Bay even, because it’s too warm.”

Temperatures around 70 degrees can be lethal for salmon. In rivers, pathogens such as Ichthyophthirius multifiliis (ich) and columnaris (gill rot) thrive in warm water. The diseases spread more quickly when the rivers are crowded by low flows, and can lead to increased pre-spawn mortality. (more…)

Continue ReadingDrought prevents salmon from returning to hatchery
Read more about the article What Tribal Hatcheries Are Doing to Save Salmon from the Drought
Dean Jackson, Quileute tribal fisheries technician, moves salmon fry out of a pool cut off from Morganroth Creek as part of the tribe's work to move as many stranded fry as possible from pools created by early and persistent drought conditions.

What Tribal Hatcheries Are Doing to Save Salmon from the Drought

Dean Jackson, Quileute tribal fisheries technician, moves salmon fry out of a pool cut off from Morganroth Creek as part of the tribe's work to move as many stranded fry as possible from pools created by early and persistent drought conditions.
Dean Jackson, Quileute tribal fisheries technician, moves salmon fry out of a pool cut off from Morganroth Creek as part of the tribe’s work to move as many stranded fry as possible from pools created by early and persistent drought conditions.

Tribal hatchery managers are working to save salmon from potentially deadly water temperatures and low flows.

On the Olympic Peninsula, the Makah Tribe’s Hoko Hatchery released chinook three weeks early and sockeye a month early.

“In the summer, we’re usually looking at flows of 100 gallons a minute – we’re already at 160 gallons a minute and it’s only June,” said Joe Hinton, Makah hatchery manager. “Even with the lower flows, I have lots of room to spread them out – but as temperatures go up, I can’t do much about that.”

Temperatures higher than 60 degrees are bad for salmon, because pathogens such as Ichthyophthirius multifiliis (ich) and columnaris (gill rot) thrive in warm water. The diseases spread more quickly when the rivers are crowded by low flows, and can lead to increased pre-spawn mortality. (more…)

Continue ReadingWhat Tribal Hatcheries Are Doing to Save Salmon from the Drought
Read more about the article How a Hot Summer Could Be Deadly for Salmon
Coho fry are rescued from pools that had become disconnected from the Hoh River.

How a Hot Summer Could Be Deadly for Salmon

Coho fry are rescued from pools that had become disconnected from the Hoh River.
Coho fry are rescued from pools that had become disconnected from the Hoh River.

After a winter of record low snowfall and Gov. Jay Inslee’s May declaration of a statewide drought, treaty tribes in western Washington are concerned about high water temperatures, low flows and pre-spawn mortality in returning salmon.

“This drought will have catastrophic, far-reaching effects for many years to come,” said Scott Schuyler, natural resources director for the Upper Skagit Tribe.

By May a lack of water had stranded coho, cutthroat and steelhead on the Olympic Peninsula and coast.

Some rivers, such as the Stillaguamish, are setting low flow records every day.

Temperatures higher than 60 degrees are bad for salmon, because pathogens such as ichthyophthirius multifiliis (ich) and columnaris (gill rot) thrive in warm water. The diseases spread more quickly when the rivers are crowded by low flows, and can lead to increased pre-spawn mortality. (more…)

Continue ReadingHow a Hot Summer Could Be Deadly for Salmon