Salmon carcasses to be distributed in Tucannon River basin

More than 500 adult salmon carcasses will be placed in the Tucannon River basin Thursday through Saturday by staff from the Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife and volunteers from the Tri-State Steelheaders.

“Salmon carcasses provide marine-derived nutrients to the river,” said Jeremy Trump, a Fish and Wildlife district fish biologist in Dayton.

“Too few salmon and steelhead have returned to the Tucannon River in recent years to provide the necessary nutrients to maintain a productive food web,” he said. “We're giving Mother Nature a jump-start so that the natural process of recycling salmon nutrients can resume.”

Studies have shown that distributing salmon carcasses help streams rebound to healthy salmon habitat, Trump said. Bobcats, otters, mink and other wildlife also consume the salmon carcasses.

The carcasses, many of which are in the 20 to 30 pound range, are surplus or spawned spring or fall Chinook salmon from the state’s Lyons Ferry and Tucannon fish hatcheries.

This story was originally published December 15, 2016 at 7:38 PM with the headline "Salmon carcasses to be distributed in Tucannon River basin."