They were listed as endangered in 1991 and last year just one fish successfully made the 900-mile journey from the ocean to the lake. The fish has a coded wire tag that indicates it's the progeny of four males and three females that returned to Idaho in 1993. Those fish were spawned and their offspring reared in hatcheries for their entire life cycle. At least 19 of the 22 sockeye counted at Lower Granite Dam this year also came from fish released in 1998. Oddly, those fish have spent just one year in the ocean.
Sockeye generally spend two years at sea.
So fisheries managers are not sure the females will be able to produce eggs should any return. He said it will take some time, perhaps a month, to determine if the fish are able to spawn. Moore expects about a dozen of the 22 to make it to the Stanley Basin. If they are able to produce eggs, Moore said, there is a chance they will be allowed to spawn in the wild. By and large we intend to let them spawn naturally.