Male Chinook salmon outnumber female at Whitehorse fish ladder

For the first time in years the number of Chinook salmon returning to spawn in the Yukon River is above the minimum set out in a Canada-U.S. treaty, but there are still concerns about the health and future of the wild salmon population.

Biologists were predicting the lowest number of returning salmon ever this season and for the first time ever a complete fishing ban was imposed along the entire length of the river, through Alaska and Yukon, to allow thefish to reach their spawning grounds.

The Canada-U.S. fisheries treaty provides for a minimum 42,000Chinook salmon to return toCanadian spawning grounds. Returning salmonare counted at aborder sonar station on the Yukon River at Eagle, Alaska. This year isjust the third time in eightyears that the minimum goal has been reached.

So far more than 500 Chinook salmonhave made it to the Whitehorse hydro dam's fish ladder.

Lawrence Vano, who manages a fish hatchery program at the fish ladder, is congratulating everyone who didn't fish this summer.

"I never, ever would have thought that they would actually agree to not fishing for at least a season," he said. "At least it is a starting point."

Fish ladder employees are selecting a few fish to be kept in tanks so their eggs can be collected and raised in thehatchery.

Vanois concerned because so many of thefish returning are from the hatchery. Only a fraction are wild fish and males are outnumbering females by nearly three to one.

"Fiveyears ago the run just wasn't as productive as other years so they knew that the female population was probably going to be a bit shy," said Vano.

"So we are being verycareful on ourbrood stockcollection. We want to make sure we get up on the spawning grounds."

Despite the high proportion of male and hatchery-raised fish,Vanois confident this years fishing ban will pay off five years down the road when the salmon from this year'sspawnersreturn to repeat the cycle.