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Methow Valley News August 15, 2001 Endangered Species Poached salmon, taken from hatchery, loaded with antibiotics By John Hanron Workers at the Winthrop National Fish Hatchery are keeping a closer eye on their facility after the discovery last week that somebody stole adult Chinook salmon from the holding tank. Chris Pasley, manager of the hatchery, said workers last Tuesday found a large amount of blood on the ramp leading up to the viewing window of the tank, which was holding 400 adult salmon ready for spawning. There was also a blood trail on the wall. There are some fish in the pond that have fish hooks sticking out of their mouths. Pasley said these fish, and others that may be sporting hooks that may not be so obvious, could pose a danger to hatchery workers when they process the fish. Being so close to their spawning time, the fish are not particularly good eating, having expended most of their fat on getting back upriver. In addition, Pasley said, all of the fish in the tank were inoculated July 27 with large amounts of erythromycin, an antibiotic intended to keep the fish healthy until spawning starts this week. "There are some fish out there that people shouldn’t be eating," Pasley said. Hatchery technicians noticed when they inoculated the fish that 10 were missing but thought there could have been a miscount. Now, with the recent evidence of theft, they will have to wait for spawning to get a final count on how many fish have been taken from the holding pond. "It may be a bigger problem than we thought," Pasley said. Pasley said he has come upon people fishing in the outfall channel, totally unaware that they were doing so illegally and that they were targeting an endangered species. At least 60 percent of the fish in the holding tank are endangered spring Chinook salmon, not of hatchery origin. A new program this year utilized traps on the Methow, Chewuch and Twisp rivers to collect a higher percentage of "wild" fish for spawning, forcing the fish looking to return to the hatchery to spawn to find someplace in the river. Pasley said a conviction of taking an endangered species can bring with it a $30,000 fine and a year in jail. The hatchery has decided to limit its response to installing better signage that informs visitors of the legal consequences as well as the potential for medical problems from eating fish with so much antibiotic. As well, hatchery workers living adjacent to the facility will be keeping a sharp ear out for night time activity. Spawning is expected to take place over the next four to five weeks. In the Methow River, fishermen can fish catch-and-release with gear sized for fish under 20 inches. All anglers should be familiar with the regulations before they dip their line in the water. River recreationists should also be aware that there are a large number of Chinook salmon in the river system ready to spawn. If these fish are sighted, they should be left alone. "Those fish are about ready to go into spawning modes. They’re gonna be in the shallow," said Pasley. "Try to let those fish do their thing and spawn. It’s the end of their life cycle. The less they get disturbed the better success they’ll have." Opinion | Sports |
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