The Columbia River sockeye run is off to a record-setting start, says The Seattle Times, despite the fact that earlier in the season fishery managers forecasted a low salmon return due to high water temperatures. As of Monday, “June 13, a total of 33,496 sockeye [had] been counted at Bonneville Dam, the highest count through that date since at least 1938 — the previous record was 24,728 sockeye last year,” reports the Times.
But experts have predicted that number of sockeye to ultimately make it to the Columbia River this year would fall far below the most recent 10-year average of 290,200, coming in closer to 106,600. By that count, only 500 sockeye should have returned by now. The fish’s numbers typically peak around July 1, giving the salmon time to either dwindle in the heat as they move upstream or prove the scientists wrong.