Fish Marking and Tagging Trailer Open for Tours in Magic Valley

Visitors are invited to tour a fish marking and tagging trailer at the Magic Valley Steelhead Hatchery on Thursday August 7. Each year, three automated fish marking and tagging trailers travel to nine Idaho salmon and steelhead hatcheries where they mark and tag more than 16 million smolts (juvenile salmon and steelhead) which are reared at the hatcheries. Fish managers use markings to track the movement and survival of anadromous fish which swim from freshwater streams to the ocean and back. This provides critical information used to protect and recover wild salmon and steelhead, while maximizing opportunity for commercial and sport harvest of hatchery fish. Two processes are completed in the automated trailers; "Tagging" refers to the placement of a tiny piece of stainless steel wire into the snouts of fish. The wires, called "coded wire tags," contain a series of numbers which identify a specific group of fish. When fish return to the hatchery, the coded wire tag can be detected using a scanning device. "Mass marking" removes adipose fins to distinguish hatchery fish from wild fish. This allows anglers to harvest hatchery salmon and steelhead and release wild fish. Inside the automated trailer, video imaging detects the adipose fin and clips it before sending the fish back into the hatchery raceways. The process takes seconds, and the fish never leave the water. Each trailer can mark and tag up to 8,000 fish per hour. Workers staff each trailer to monitor the ongoing quality of the process. Tours will be available at the Magic Valley Steelhead Hatchery from 9:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. and from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. on August 7. Visitors wanting a tour are asked to come to the main hatchery office located at 2036 River Road in Filer. For more information about a tour call 208-326-3230.