Fall-run chinook spawning concludes at Feather River Fish Hatchery
The spawning of fall-run chinook salmon concluded at the Feather River Fish Hatchery in early November with millions of fish eggs now fertilized and incubated. For the second year in a row, the hatchery increased the amount of fall-run chinook salmon eggs collected to offset effects of California’s current drought now going on its third year. This year, the hatchery collected about 9.5 million fall-run salmon eggs, according to the Department of Water Resources. The average number of fall-run chinook salmon eggs collected at the hatchery is 7.2 million. Raquel Borrayo, spokeswoman for the Department of Water Resources, said DWR and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife agreed to increase the amount of fall-run chinook salmon grown at the hatchery “to enhance the salmon fishery during this drought period as the overall Central Valley salmon numbers have been lower due to the drought.”