Concerned about salmon runs

The armchair salmon experts recently speak, and not one in the Chinook jargon.

Science recently has proven that wild salmon, spawning under Darwin’s survival of the fittest standard was recently discovered by a long-term scientific Oregon State University study.

“This is the first study to examine mate choice among wild-spawning fish of both hatchery and wild origin, and the results suggest that greater diversity of immune genes between wild-born pairs of coho salmon may increase offspring survival,” said Amelia Whitcomb, who did the research as a master’s student at OSU and is lead author on the publication. “These findings, along with future research, may have important implications for hatchery supplementation programs,” added Whitcomb, who now works for the Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife.

Female salmon pick their mates, that’s scientific fact. “Tolo” in the Chinook language, means semi-formal dance, analogous to the homecoming ball, to which girls ask boys. From the Chinook for “to win.”

This past year the Bristol Bay salmon run was the third-largest recorded in history. How do they do that, without a hatchery in 1,000 nautical miles? As any person knows well, “Skookum” runs of salmon never involve a hatchery in any biologically diverse ecosystem.

A “Skookum house” is a jail or prison.

This story was originally published December 22, 2015 at 4:01 PM with the headline "Concerned about salmon runs."