Kitwanga Update to Aug.20

Information courtesy of Gitanyow Fisheries Authority
The Kitwanga River Salmon Enumeration Facility has been in operation since July 11, 2008 under slightly higher than normal water conditions, and total salmon counts to the night of August 20, 2008 are as follows:

Sockeye = 143
Chinook = 1,354
Pink = 243
Chum = 3
Coho = 3
A total of 143 Sockeye have moved through the fence to date. Based on average run timings seen previously approximately 52% (max. = 77% / min. = 19%) of the run has usually moves through the KSEF by August 20 in any given year. If this years run timing holds true to average run timings observed previously, we predict that the sockeye escapement to the Kitwanga for 2008 will be < 300 fish.

Chinook escapement through the KSEF has been slow, the 2nd lowest ever recorded to the date since accurate enumeration started in 2003. Usually by August 20 our chinook escapements > 2,100 and ~90% of the run would have moved through the site in any given year.

We counted our first pink salmon on August 6, the latest arrival ever recorded for pink salmon at the KSEF since accurate enumeration commenced in 2003. The pink returns still look poor, compareable to what was observed in 2006 when less than 12,000 escaped to the system.

Very few chum / coho salmon have been counted to date. We expect that chum returns will significantly pick-up over the next week while most coho probably won't escape to the system until mid-September.
Information courtesy of Gitanyow Fisheries Authority