BUCKLEY (June 25, 2007) – The first pink salmon of the year was safely captured, counted and passed upstream by tribal staff at the White River fish trap in mid-June, nearly a month before pink salmon are normally seen in the watershed.
“We don’t normally see pinks until well into July, and not in big numbers until August,” said Russ Ladley, resource protection manager for the Puyallup Tribe of Indians. “This could mean an even larger run.”
Tribal and state co-managers expect more than 770,000 pinks to return to the Puyallup River system this year. The run has been climbing since 2003 when almost 250,000 pink salmon returned to the watershed. Two years later more than 610,000 came back. Most pink salmon return in only odd numbered years.
The trap on the White River is owned and maintained by the US Army Corps of Engineers and operated in cooperation with the Muckleshoot and Puyallup tribes.
(END)
For more information, contact: Russ Ladley, resource protection manager, Puyallup Tribe of Indians, (253) 845-9225.
A high resolution, jpeg image of the pink salmon is available. Contact [email protected].
Fish counts at the White River fish trap are available at the US Army Corps of Engineers website.
