Transporting Young Salmon To Help Them Avoid Dams Decreases Survival I

[Achilles Tang]

Scientists have discovered that management efforts intended to assist migrations of salmon and steelhead trout can have unintended consequences for fish populations. Juveniles that are transported downstream on boats can lose the ability to migrate back to their breeding grounds, reducing their survivorship and altering adaptations in the wild. Attempts to avoid dams can therefore decrease survival in adult fish. Transportation programs have been in place for over three decades to improve the survival of fish that hatch in rivers but migrate downstream to the ocean, where they live most of their adult lives.

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