More High Water Temperature Fish Issues

An estimated 109 spring chinook died last week on the upper section of the Middle Fork John Day River, apparently due to low river flows and warm temperatures.

LINK (via: The Statesman Journal)

Unusually warm waters in the Columbia River Basin have prompted federal officials to invoke measures to help migrating fish survive the hostile conditions.

As river temperatures climb to record highs while water flow continues to drop, the Wild Fish Conservancy is calling for an emergency closure of fisheries across the West Coast where temperatures are higher than 65-degrees.

LINK (via:King5)

Numerous decades-old sturgeon being found dead in the Columbia River near the Tri-Cities are prompting a proposal to close catch-and-release fishing for the species.

Theories for the sturgeon deaths include the possibility that the sockeyes they’re eating in this year’s big salmon run could be diseased from migrating upstream in the Columbia’s unusually warm water conditions.

Another theory, Hoffarth said, suggests that the sturgeon are stressed by the combination of dramatically lower-than-normal Columbia flows with higher-than-normal July water temperatures.

LINK (via: The Spokesman)