Tony Overman/The Olympian
Dylan Hall, 12, of Gig Harbor tosses a chum salmon carcass into Ohop Creek during Saturday's Pre-Spring Carcass Fling sponsored by Nisqually Stream Stewards through the Nisqually tribe's Natural Resources Division. Volunteers toss carcasses into the Mashel River, Nisqually River and Ohop Creek.

Annual salmon fling enriches streams

Stream Stewards use dead fish to nurture beds

RUTH LONGORIA, THE OLYMPIAN

Originally published Sunday, March 3, 2002

EATONVILLE -- It was like a discus throw with a significant purpose.

Those hurling 2-foot-long frozen salmon carcasses into the Mashel River on Saturday morning weren't competing for medals or ribbons.

They wanted to help the environment.

The Pre-Spring Salmon Carcass Fling is an attempt by Nisqually Stream Stewards volunteers to help provide food for baby salmon and other wildlife.

"It's harder than it looks," said Amy Callahan, 28, of Olympia as she pulled her arms back and flung two fish as far as her strength allowed.

The carcasses landed about 3 feet out in the water, snagging a dead tree limb.

"It used to be that, years ago, people thought large woody debris like this was bad in streams," Nisqually Stream Stewards volunteer coordinator Ann Marie Finan said as she pointed to the branch and its salmon catch.

"But now we know that debris can play an important part in the stream. The branch holds the salmon carcass there so the dead fish doesn't rush down the stream and live fish or other wildlife can feed on it," Finan said.

"That's one reason we plant trees along streams, so there will always be a significant source of branches to fall into the water," she said.

The salmon flinging project is a partnership between the Nisqually tribe, forestry companies and landowners.

About 2,000 dead salmon -- provided by tribal fishers -- will be tossed into area streams during the project, which began in November and ends in March, Finan said.

On Saturday, 18 volunteers heaved about 400 carcasses into the rushing waters at a half-dozen sites that flow into the Nisqually River.

The Mashel is one of the most important tributaries of the Nisqually River and is inhabited by seven species of salmon, Finan said.

In addition to helping provide food for wildlife, salmon flinging provides a morning of entertainment for young and old, Finan said.

"I have fun just tossing the fish myself, but it's more fun if you can get other people to help," she said.

Sheila Renton smiled as her son, Kyle, 6, tossed his frozen fish high into the air and out into the water.

Renton, 40, is the leader of an environmental stewardship 4-H club in Tacoma. She said she's excited to teach her son and his friends about the ecosystem through projects such as the salmon fling.

"My plan is to hook the kids while they are young," she said. "If they don't learn to love the environment when they are younger, it's hard to get them enthused later. And this is very important."

On the Web:

- Nisqually Indian Tribe

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