Text by Myrna Kerr; Photos by Mike Manson
A boat did a PanPan (“Possible Assistance Needed”) call at 4 AM on January 26, but the contact was not clear. So the Air Sea Rescue Helicopter went out looking for it. The Sailboat was on the rocks below my house and, of course, out of sight even if it had lights on.
Continue reading Wrecked Boat on the Rocks Below My PropertyEditor’s note: To what extent is modern infrastructure responsible for the crash of fish populations? The book cited below explores how a 3,000 year-old fishery was destroyed when the city of Vancouver came into existence, but this is not a purely urban phenomenon. In a 2016 interview, Cortes Island streamkeeper Cec Robinson described how there is very little gravel left in Cortes Island streams because of early logging practises. This makes it more difficult for salmon to find places to spawn. When Provincial biologist Sean Wong installed a new culvert in Basil Creek, he told Cortes Currents there are 140,000 culverts in BC that are barriers to fish trying to migrate to their spawning grounds. Prior to the erection of the first dam in 1911, Powell River was a major spawning ground for Sockeye Salmon.
By Mina Kerr-Lazenby, North Shore News, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
A new study examining the historical decline of fish populations in Vancouver waters highlights the detrimental impacts urban development has had on the local environment, and way of life for First Nations communities.
The Rise of Vancouver and the Collapse of Forage Fish, published in December by Western Washington University, tracks the decrease in numbers of ocean forage fish like herring, smelt and eulachon between 1885 and 1920.
Continue reading New study shows how industrial development decimated fish populations near VancouverEditor’s note: Most of the salmon on Cortes Island are Chum, not Sockeye, but a DFO study of scale growth measurements from the Big Qualicum River suggests Chum are also being affected by climate change. Chum salmon appear to be growing smaller ‘due to increased ocean temperatures driven by climate change‘ and also the increased competition over a diminishing number of prey. There are also reports of them relocating to more northern locations. In October 2023, a University of Alaska study revealed that 100 Chum had been found in waters emptying into the Arctic Ocean. They were ‘either actively spawning or had finished spawning.’ Lead author Peter Wesley wrote, “Throughout most parts of the salmon’s range, things have gotten too warm and they’re starting to blink off. In the Arctic, the water is getting warm enough and they’re starting to blink on.”
Canada’s National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Climate change has tipped the scales, causing juvenile sockeye salmon in B.C. to grow bigger over the past century.
The growth of salmon using lakes as nurseries during the first years of life in northern B.C. is about 35 per cent higher than 100 years ago, a new study from Simon Fraser University shows.
Continue reading Baby sockeye salmon are growing faster due to climate change. Is bigger better?Editor’s note: This solution would not work for Chum, the principal salmon species found on Cortes Island. Unlike Coho, Chinook, and Sockeye, Chum do not reside in fresh water for an extended period. The 2022 and 2023 runs in Basil Creek were virtually wiped out because there was not enough water for them to return and spawn.
By Seth Forward, Prince Rupert Northern View, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Comparing past sockeye populations in the Skeena watershed to their present-day counterparts may hold the key to preserving the species, according to an SFU postdoctoral fellow.
Michael Price, who resides in Smithers, found in his Ph.D. research that a warming climate is making juvenile Skeena sockeye grow larger and is changing the habitats in which the young fish can thrive.
Price found that small, warmer and more shallow lakes that juvenile sockeye used to thrive in are now becoming less suitable for the fish, with larger, deeper and colder lakes taking their place as the optimal habitat for sockeye to grow before they make the daunting trip to the ocean.
Continue reading The past holds the key to the future for Skeena sockeye: SFU researcherEditor’s note: When the Chum runs were large enough, Cortes Island Streamkeepers harvested the eggs from Chum Salmon returning to Basil Creek and raised them in the Klahoose hatchery in 2020 and 2021. Very few salmon returned in 2022, so 50,000 Chum eggs were brought from the Tla’amin Fish Hatchery in Powell River. The following article illustrates the fact that DFO has been attempting to preserve salmon stocks in many areas.
Canada’s National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Winter sun backlighting their frosted breath, a dozen people trudge gingerly in the icy waters of the Trent River in search of salmon.
Loaded with gear and armed with wooden poles, eyes down and intent, they test each step on slick rocks while navigating the currents swelled by November rains.
Each fall, upwards of 25 volunteers join an expedition to a remote section of the Vancouver Island river to help the Courtenay Fish and Game Protective Association trap spawning coho to take back to its new hatchery at Comox Lake.
Continue reading Salmon skyline takes wild coho conservation to new heights
