American shad, a silvery bullet of a fish whose home waters are on the East Coast of the U.S., migrated into the Columbia River basin this year in record numbers. Nearly 7.5 million of the 18-inch, 3 to 8-pound fish crossed Bonneville Dam, more than four times the number of salmon and steelhead that have crossed the dam this year.
According to the Fish Passage Center, 127,656 adult Chinook salmon passed Bonneville by Aug. 25 this year. Add to that 1,676 coho (although a big run is expected in 2019), 52,464 steelhead, 63,026 sockeye, and just one chum salmon, and the total salmonid run so far in 2019 is just 244,823.
LINK (via: Chinook Observer)
