Why do you show this picture as if the salmon eggs are lying loose in the fish’s cavity where the guts and innards used to be? This isn’t really how it looks when you slice them open, is it?
This really is what they look like when we cut them open. When salmon are ready to lay eggs the membrane that holds their eggs in place breaks down and the eggs float around in the body cavity. You can’t tell in this picture but the guts and innards are still there underneath the eggs. This salmon was only about half full so you can imagine the staggering number of eggs a salmon can contain.
Rarely we do see female salmon die prematurely and when we cut them open their eggs are still tightly bundled in the membrane.
We stopped by Carkeek today to catch the end of the run. Saw many carcasses with the belly cut cleanly. Looks like it is part of the survey. Do you collect the eggs or leave it for scavenging wildlife?
That’s right, we slice the belly of carcasses as part of the survey process. After taking data we return all the carcasses and their eggs to roughly where we found them so we don’t disrupt the natural processes.
Why do you show this picture as if the salmon eggs are lying loose in the fish’s cavity where the guts and innards used to be? This isn’t really how it looks when you slice them open, is it?
This really is what they look like when we cut them open. When salmon are ready to lay eggs the membrane that holds their eggs in place breaks down and the eggs float around in the body cavity. You can’t tell in this picture but the guts and innards are still there underneath the eggs. This salmon was only about half full so you can imagine the staggering number of eggs a salmon can contain.
Rarely we do see female salmon die prematurely and when we cut them open their eggs are still tightly bundled in the membrane.
We stopped by Carkeek today to catch the end of the run. Saw many carcasses with the belly cut cleanly. Looks like it is part of the survey. Do you collect the eggs or leave it for scavenging wildlife?
That’s right, we slice the belly of carcasses as part of the survey process. After taking data we return all the carcasses and their eggs to roughly where we found them so we don’t disrupt the natural processes.