On Sept. 20, five Upper Columbia River sockeye salmon arrived at the MK Nature Center in Boise—and yes, they had a little help from the tanker truck. The fish were delivered from the Eagle Fish Hatchery Complex, and they have quite a story to tell.
MK Nature Center in Boise welcomes five Upper Columbia River sockeye salmon
idfg-cliess
And yes, they had a little help from the tanker truck.
Unlike Idaho’s Snake River sockeye salmon which are endangered, these sockeye are not endangered and in fact had an incredible 700,000+ individuals return this year! Some strayed from their home waters and ended up in the Lower Snake River at Lower Granite Dam. There, they were collected by Idaho Fish and Game fisheries folks along with Snake River sockeye, transported to Eagle, separated from the Snake River fish, and brought to the MK Nature Center.
The Upper Columbia River population and the Snake River population look identical, but they are genetically distinct. Fisheries managers would not want to spawn the two populations together for fear of creating a less robust group of offspring. Remember, Snake River sockeye salmon migrate back over roughly 900 miles and 6,500 feet in elevation to spawn at Redfish Lake, a truly incredible feat!
To learn more about endangered Snake River sockeye salmon, visit the Sockeye Salmon webpage. Speaking of visiting, come on down to the nature center and see these big fish for yourselves! The outside path part of the nature center is open ever day dawn to dusk, and the sockeye are in the largest of our four underwater viewing windows.
A special thanks to our colleagues at the Eagle Fish Hatchery and Fish and Game fisheries bureau for making this sockeye fish viewing experience possible!