Pacific salmon die at the end of their spawning cycle. We (humanely) kill the females and bleed them (to ensure there isn’t any blood in the cavity to interfere with spawning
The eggs are put into ice cream pails so we can count the eggs for each female.
The milt (male’s sperm) is captured in the small cups and them mixed with the eggs. Only when they are exposed to water does fertilization occur!
The eggs are put into an antiseptic bath to clean them
The eggs are put into an antiseptic bath to clean them
Success! That little white dot is the newly fertilized embryo.
Chum and Coho eggs are put into Heath Trays in the Incubation Room.
Pink eggs go into the vertical incubators
Coho (males on the left, females right) after spawning.
The salmon are returned to the river. Contrary to popular belief, it’s not the rain that gives us the big trees, but the salmon. Many of the returning salmon are caught be predators or scavengers and taken into the woods to be eaten. All of these nutrients are returned to the soil on the river banks and feed the trees. The salmon that decompose in the river feed the insects that will feed the next generation of fry in the spring. The classic “Circle of Life” demonstration in action!