Suquamish tribal fisherman Ray Forsman is continuing the tradition of sharing a fisherman’s harvest with his community, ensuring that tribal members have enough to eat. After harvesting Fraser River pink…
The Lummi Nation distributed sockeye salmon to tribal members last month for families to can and store for the winter.
“The tribe puts fish away as much as possible when we have an abundance, for ceremonies and all the functions that the tribe sponsors,” said Randy Kinley Sr., policy representative for the tribe. “It’s very important to take care of your people’s needs culturally.”
The fish was caught during the record 2010 Fraser River sockeye salmon fishery and has been in cold storage.
“The sockeye season was short this year and we wanted to make sure people have the opportunity to put salmon away for the winter,” Kinley said.
The Skagit Valley Herald reports on the record Fraser River sockeye returns and the importance to the Swinomish Tribe: This year’s Fraser River sockeye salmon run is shaping up to…
Treaty tribes in western Washington are having a bountiful Fraser River sockeye fishery this season, with at least three times the number of fish returning as expected. More than 30 million sockeye are estimated to return to the Fraser River in British Columbia this year – the highest run size recorded since 1913.
View photos of the fishery in the San Juan Islands on NWIFC’s Flickr feed.
Nine treaty tribes in western Washington have treaty-reserved rights to catch Fraser River sockeye in U.S. waters before they migrate upstream. The Fraser River sockeye treaty tribes are Lummi, Jamestown S’Klallam, Lower Elwha Klallam, Nooksack, Makah, Port Gamble S’Klallam, Suquamish, Swinomish and Tulalip. (more…)
The Bellingham Herald: The Fraser River sockeye salmon runs, the biggest local moneymaker for commercial fishing in good years, appear to have collapsed again in 2009. Although some hope remains…
The Peninsula Daily News reported on the Makah, Lower Elwha Klallam and Jamestown S'Klallam tribes receiving federal funding to make up for poor sockeye runs from British Columbia's Fraser River.…