In a recent instagram post by fisheries biologist John R. McMillan (@rainforest_steel), the wild salmonid crusader emphasized a little-known necessity for a healthy salmon river. "The four H’s of salmon recovery are: Hatcheries, Hydropower, Harvest, and Habitat.
Of those, habitat is most often proffered as the main factor limiting salmon recovery.
Regardless, my point is that nearly all of us agree that freshwater habitat is critical to the production of fish and the sustainability of our fisheries.
It is fundamental.
That is why we have spent billions of dollars trying to restore and reconnect the fish’s habitat.
However, habitat is not just stream flow, large wood, and floodplains.
A factor so clearly understood to be important that it is hard to imagine why it continues to collect dust in the big box of potential salmon recovery tools – because the notion is as old as human and salmon have interacted.
More important than pink salmon and the density of the juvenile coho.
Sure, the coho still need the basics: cold water, pools, some cover and access to the ocean.
In a recent instagram post by fisheries biologist John R. McMillan (@rainforest_steel), the wild salmonid crusader emphasized a little-known necessity for a healthy salmon river. Check out the full post below.
“The four H’s of salmon recovery are: Hatcheries, Hydropower, Harvest, and Habitat. Of those, habitat is most often proffered as the main factor limiting salmon recovery. Of course, if you live in the Snake River or pretty much anywhere in Central/Southern California it can be argued that hydropower has been just as bad, even worse. Regardless, my point is that nearly all of us agree that freshwater habitat is critical to the production of fish and the sustainability of our fisheries. It is fundamental. That is why we have spent billions of dollars trying to restore and reconnect the fish’s habitat.
However, habitat is not just stream flow, large wood, and floodplains. There is another component. A factor so clearly understood to be important that it is hard to imagine why it continues…
