Shrinking: Blame it on climate

Alaska’s salmon

Anchorage, Alaska: Alaska’s highly prized salmon — a favorite of seafood lovers the world over — are getting smaller, and climate change is a suspected culprit, a new study reported, documenting a trend that may pose a risk to a valuable fishery, indigenous people and wildlife. The study, led by University of Alaska at Fairbanks (UAF) scientists, found that four of Alaska’s five wild salmon species have shrunk in average fish size over the past six decades, with stunted growth becoming more pronounced since 2010. Hardest hit is Alaska’s official state fish, the Chinook salmon, also known as king salmon. Chinooks on average are 8 percent smaller than they were before 1990, according to the study, published on Wednesday in the journal Nature Communications. Also shrinking are Alaska’s sockeye, coho and chum salmon, the report said. The findings are based on data from 12.5 million samples collected over six decades. The study confirms first-hand anecdotal accounts from Alaskans with generations of salmon tradition, said co-author Peter Westley of UAF’s College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences. “People are walking into their smokehouses and not having to duck anymore,” he said. “The fish are just smaller.” Warmer seas attributed to climate change and increased competition among all species of salmon are the likeliest factors. Salmon are maturing in the ocean at earlier ages and returning to fresh water younger and smaller than in the past, the study found. In waterways like the Yukon River, the “really big whoppers” are no longer seen, Westley said.