If it ain't the salmon, it's the shrimp

[RumpleForeskin]

Damn. Didn't realize the massive affect those rivers in the midwest had on the Gulf.

"Since most of the water from the Midwest is still making its way down to the Gulf, we believe that wide area of hypoxia will persist through August and likely until September, when it normally ends."

[Rootbeer]

If this makes national headlines, watch the global warming crowd flock to it like flies on turds.

[Dinsdale]

Pretty much SOP for shellfish around these parts... a heavy freshet dumping into the bays causes the crabs and shellfish to either move out to saltier water, or die... their choice.

[PSUFAN]

JSC, can you run over a few Nutria and throw 'em on the barbie?

[Goober McTuber]

Pretty much SOP for shellfish around these parts... a heavy freshet dumping into the bays causes the crabs and shellfish to either move out to saltier water, or die... their choice.

But how will they get to work?

[Dinsdale]

We got punked by the nutria fur scam of the 1930's around these parts, too.


It hasn't been publicized at all, but apparently, something is being done about them at Eastmoreland Golf Course... where you often had to shoo all the nutria off the #12 tee to find a patch of grass to hit from.

A little more competition for the food around here, what with beavers and whatnot, but nutria are thriving quite well. From this, I conclude that nutria aren't particularly good to eat... since we have another thriving population around here -- we call them "Asians." And if nutria were grubbable, they'd have about disappeared from the urban landscape... much the way the rabbits have.

[Dinsdale]

getting $5 per tail bounty from the State.

I'd quit my job(s) if that was the case. And I'd be wealthy quickly.


But they do offer up to $5 a head for squawfish (northern pikeminnow) out of the Columbia, so there is a way for absolute slackers to make some dough.

[Mikey]

hypoxia...dead zone


For some reason the space between wolfman's ears keeps coming to mind.

[Dinsdale]

Just broke a post-dam-construction record for sockeye returns on The Creek.

Then again, they bumped the hell out of hatchery production, so go figure.


But, at Lower Granite Dam on the Snake, where 10 years ago all of 2 sockeye made it through the ladder, which was purt'near "extinction," they've now had 800 so far. But the percentage of returning adults vs. smolts released is higher than previous years, tenatively credited to the increased dam spills of the last couplefew years.


The chinook and steelhead seem to be coming in better numbers, too. Lots of people blaming "ocean conditions," who are full of crap (although ocean conditions have theoretically improved as well). The coastal chinook had the same ocean conditions, but no dams and much less pollution, and there wasn't ever a lack of them... an off year here and there, but plenty around.


Looking up. Fisheries management has a loooooong way to go, but it's certainly improving to protect this incredibly valuable resource/wonder of nature.

[PSUFAN]

As long as lk_pk lives and breathes, fish taco snacks will be abundant in the 314.

[Mikey]

But, at Lower Granite Dam on the Snake, where 10 years ago all of 2 sockeye made it through the ladder, which was purt'near "extinction," they've now had 800 so far.

Do they have to check in before moving on up the river?

[Dinsdale]

Do they have to check in before moving on up the river?

Is that a bad joke, or are you really unfamiliar with this stuff?


It's a fish ladder. In a crazy bit of forethought, when they build those, they make the outside wall out of glass. In the Old Days, they used to pay scrubs to sit there and count them. But in this age of technology, it's automated. Awfully hard to get past a fish ladder unnoticed, unless a 1500 pound sturgeon is providing cover.


Looks a lot like this:








Except it usually has fish in it. When the (non-native) shad come, they'll block out the windows, since they come several hundred thousand per day when they're going. It can occasionally get pretty dark with nookers and steelies, too.

[Dinsdale]

Although if one is in to viewing salmon, rather than bashing their skulls in, the Cascade Streamwatch thingy they built rocks --





Kinda carved out the streambank and replaced it with glass below the stream grade. Very cool to watch what goes on under the surface in a spawning stream.

[Smackie Chan]

if we can get over eating crabs and crawfish, then nutria shouldn't be a problem.

Not to mention it should be an abundant source of nutriants.

[Goober McTuber]

Very cool to watch what goes on under the surface in a spawning stream.

You sit around and watch fish fuck? What a life.