Study Confirms Salmon Spawning in Arctic Rivers
A new study at the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences has confirmed that salmon are spawning in an Arctic Ocean watershed, suggesting that at least some salmon species could be expanding to new territory due to climate change.
Researchers found about 100 chum salmon in the Anaktuvuk and Itkillik rivers on Alaska’s North Slope. Both rivers flow into the Colville River, which empties into the Arctic Ocean.
All the fish caught by researchers in mid-September 2023 were either actively spawning or had finished spawning at sites where groundwater appeared to be flowing to the surface, said Jeff Richardson, communications manager for the college. Similar conditions have supported chum salmon reproduction throughout their typical range.
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