Depoe Bay Readies Thousands of Coho Salmon for Release
In a tradition dating back 30 years, volunteers gather at the Depoe Bay water plant every July to fin clip thousands of coho salmon raised by the city before they are released into the wild. (Photo by Larry Coonrod)
By Larry Coonrod
DEPOE BAY—Almost 30 people clipped the adipose fins of 13,274 coho salmon smolts on Saturday, July 12.
The city’s Salmon Enhancement Commission receives 20,000 coho salmon eggs for hatching every winter from the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. The program started 30 years ago when two local businessmen decided to raise 100,000 salmon a year to enhance the local run.
As part of the process, the adipose fins—the small fin on the back of a salmon next to the tail—must be removed so anglers know it is a non-wild fish they can keep. In a tradition dating back years, volunteers gather the first weekend after the Fourth of July to do the fin clipping and enjoy a barbecue afterward.
This past weekend marked the 11th straight year that John King, 77, participated. By day’s end, he had fin clipped 1,460 of the 3-inch smolts-enough to bring his cumulative total to 29,168.
“When I started I thought wouldn’t it be nice to do 20, 000,” he said. “I don’t know what the number will be now. I hope I can get to 50,000.”
With the state placing more of an emphasis on wild fish, the Depoe Bay salmon project has been scaled back to 20,000 eggs a year, but still serves as a vital youth education tool, says ODFW biologist Christine Clapp.
“We want them at a young age to develop a love for fish and also respect for healthy watersheds,” Clapp said. “If you have them in that mindset when they are young, I think it will stay important to them when they are older.”
The city’s Salmon Enhancement Commission works with the local nonprofit Neighbors for Kids, teaching local youngsters about the importance of watersheds to salmon. In the past, it has partnered with Neighbors for Kids to lead stream inventory and stream improvement projects. Salmon commissioner Beanie Robison says a lack of adult volunteers limits the number of kids who participate in the program.
“We could use somebody to integrate kids at the Kid’s Zone with stream projects,” Robison said. “We used to grab four kids and come here and feed the fish. Now you have to have two adults and it’s really hard to arrange to have two adults come up here at the same time.”
Youngest Salmon Commissioner
Kylie Carver, 11, began helping feed and clip the salmon smolts at age 3 with her father Paul Carver, who also is a member of the salmon commission. The Depoe Bay City Council was so impressed with her enthusiasm, that in March it voted unanimously to appoint Kylie as the youngest ever member of the Salmon Enhancement Commission.
“It’s really cool to come up here and learn how to take care of them,” she said after clipping the last of the smolts.
Process Starts in December
The city receives 20,000 eggs from the Trask River in December, keeping them in hatch boxes on North Depoe Bay Creek. The fry hatch in mid-January.
After their egg sacks dissolve, volunteers transfer the fish to a holding pen in the city reservoir where they are fed daily. The program aims to produce 12,000 smolts for release.
By the time they are fin clipped and released into the reservoir in July, the fry have grown to about 200 fish to the pound. Over the next eight months, they will pack on size feeding in the reservoir’s nutrient-rich water before heading out on their seaward migration for the following spring. Adult fish return to their home waters after two years in the ocean.
Contact reporter Larry Coonrod by emailing editor@lincolncountydispatch.com
