Scott V
02-05-2009, 12:31 PM
Taken from the Sac Bee:
The Mokelumne River salmon hatchery will fall far short of its production quota this year, and state officials will not bolster its production with eggs from another hatchery, as originally announced.
This means at least 3 million fewer fall-run chinook salmon in a population already running a steep deficit.
The Mokelumne hatchery produced only 275,600 eggs from just 234 returning adult chinook. On average, 5,500 adults return to spawn.
As a result, the hatchery is far below its of at least 3.4 million juvenile salmon to atone for the loss of habitat caused by upstream dams.
The California Department of Fish and Game said in a news release Dec. 29 that surplus eggs from Nimbus Hatchery on the American River would be used to cover the shortfall.
But Fisheries Branch Chief Neil Manji said Nimbus didn't have any surplus eggs.
The Mokelumne River salmon hatchery will fall far short of its production quota this year, and state officials will not bolster its production with eggs from another hatchery, as originally announced.
This means at least 3 million fewer fall-run chinook salmon in a population already running a steep deficit.
The Mokelumne hatchery produced only 275,600 eggs from just 234 returning adult chinook. On average, 5,500 adults return to spawn.
As a result, the hatchery is far below its of at least 3.4 million juvenile salmon to atone for the loss of habitat caused by upstream dams.
The California Department of Fish and Game said in a news release Dec. 29 that surplus eggs from Nimbus Hatchery on the American River would be used to cover the shortfall.
But Fisheries Branch Chief Neil Manji said Nimbus didn't have any surplus eggs.