Modified Wednesday, September 21, 2005

View thousands of kokanee salmon at Strawberry Wildlife Festival

Thousands of fluorescent red kokanee salmon can be viewed at Strawberry Reservoir right now. More than 4,000 salmon are currently in the Division of Wildlife Resource's fish trap and egg-taking facility along the Strawberry River.

"Numbers-wise, this is the third best year we've had at the fish trap for kokanee salmon in the 15 years salmon have been in the reservoir," says Roger Wilson, Strawberry Reservoir project leader for the DWR.

You can view the salmon by walking along the "Discovery Boardwalk Trail" located behind the Strawberry Visitor Center. The visitor center is 23 miles east of Heber City along US-40 (Highway 40). Viewing is free of charge.

Collecting salmon eggs

Salmon emerge from the depths of Strawberry Reservoir in late August and September and migrate upstream to find an area to spawn. When the salmon work their way into the DWR fish trap and egg-taking facility (located along the Strawberry River) biologists take eggs and milt (sperm) from the fish until the quota of eggs is met. Many salmon also are allowed to go upstream to spawn naturally.

Biologists remove milt and eggs from the kokanee in the egg-taking facility by gently squeezing the stomach of the salmon. If the fish are "ripe" the eggs will liberally squirt out onto a fine mesh net. The eggs are then placed into a container with water, milt is added to fertilize the eggs and the eggs are taken to a DWR fish hatchery. More than 90 percent of the eggs taken to a hatchery will usually hatch, while egg survival in the wild is often less than 10 percent.

Biologists generally process the fish twice weekly and expect to have little problem reaching this year's egg-take goal of 1.7 million eggs.

Kokanee have an interesting life cycle that involves their shiny silver bodies changing to a bright red color when they prepare to spawn. Males also develop a noticeable hook jaw and a hump to their back. Towards the end of the spawn, the flesh and internal organs of the salmon begin to break down and they die shortly after they spawn.

In addition to sterile rainbow trout and Bear Lake cutthroat trout, kokanee salmon play an important role in the management of Strawberry Reservoir. Kokanee compete with Utah chubs for food, add variety for anglers, provide forage for the Bear Lake cutthroat trout and provide a great watchable wildlife opportunity.

Strawberry Wildlife Festival Sept. 23 and 24

While you can view kokanee salmon anytime during the day, DWR biologists will be on hand Sept. 23 and 24, during the Fifth Annual Strawberry Wildlife Festival, to lecture and provide people a closer look at these fish.

The Strawberry Wildlife Festival celebrates the many wildlife species found throughout the Strawberry Valley and is held annually during the kokanee salmon spawning run. Festival events will be held at the Strawberry Visitor Center and include educational displays, a fishing simulator, birding walks, Smokey Bear, posters and other activities.

Admission to the festival is free. The festival will be held at the Strawberry Visitor Center from noon to 6 p.m. on Sept. 23 and from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sept. 24.

For more information call Scott Root, DWR Central Region conservation outreach manager, at (801) 491-5656.

How to catch kokanee

"Though a little tricky to catch, kokanee salmon are some of the best-tasting fish the state has to offer," Root says. "Most are caught by trolling in deeper water with downrigger equipment, or using a fish finder to find the schools and then vertically jigging for them. They tend to stay in deeper water, so a boat is essential.

"They also have a soft mouth, which makes bringing them into the boat successfully a challenge; they need to be reeled in carefully and netted at the boat."

Root reminds anglers that the tributaries to Strawberry Reservoir are closed during the spawn to protect the salmon and that the reservoir and tributaries have special fishing regulations. For more information, see the 2005 Utah Fishing Proclamation. The proclamation is available on this Web site and from fishing and hunting license agents and DWR offices.