Unusual weather hurting fish

March 5, 2008

By Michelle Ma

Triplicate staff writer

Unusual weather conditions that caused sparse food production in the ocean probably led to last year's extremely low salmon returns spanning the West Coast, scientists say.

Juvenile salmon entering the ocean from their native streams in 2005 didn't have enough food to thrive, said National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Oceanographer Bill Peterson, who is based in Newport , Ore.

These dire ocean conditions three years ago manifested themselves in last fall's poor salmon turnout, scientists said.

Chinook salmon that returned to the Sacramento River to spawn last fall were a third of what fishery biologists had expected, and this year's Sacramento returns are predicted to hit an all-time low.

Likewise, the Klamath River and its tributaries last fall experienced a lower-than-average return of chinook at about 56,000 fish, said Jim Waldvogel, marine advisor for University of California Sea Grant Extension .

Last year's low returns up and down the coast—combined with this year's meager forecasts—will probably force ocean regulations to protect the stock.

"It's going to severely restrict the ocean fisheries," Waldvogel said.

The Pacific Fishery Management Council will meet next week in Sacramento for initial discussions on this year's ocean fishing regulations.

Local representatives will attend to scope out possibilities for this year's season, said Lucie La Bonté, chairwoman of the Klamath Zone Management Fisheries Coalition.

It's still unknown how the low Sacramento numbers will impact ocean fishing regulations in this area, Waldvogel said, but at least 60 percent of ocean salmon caught by sport fishermen in this area are from the Sacramento River .

Peterson and others studying possible reasons for recent low salmon returns said that deep water carrying nutrients essential for the food web didn't rise to the surface in time to feed juvenile fish three years ago.

"If you don't have the base of the food chain being productive, then you're going to have problems," Peterson said.

Cold northwest winds in the spring are necessary to bring deep-water nutrients to the surface and push away warm water. Young salmon are more likely to be preyed upon if water temperatures are warm, Peterson said, and warmer water reduces the amount of food for fish.

Next week, the Pacific Fishery Management Council will develop management options that will then be up for public review at a series of meetings along the coast. The closest meetings are in Coos Bay , Ore. , on March 31 and April 1 in Eureka .

Final regulations will be set early April in Seattle .

Reach Michelle Ma at mma@triplicate.com.

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