Tens of thousands of endangered salmon survived a road crash and escaped to a nearby creek while they were being transported by truck to a US river, officials said.
A large tanker transporting the young salmon, called smolts, was heading through Oregon last week when it rolled on its side and off the road.
The truck became upended onto its roof right next to the creek, allowing the salmon to escape.
“About 77,000 smolts made it into the creek when the tanker overturned,” the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife said.
However, about 25,000 smolts did not reach the river and their bodies had to be removed from the tanker and the stream bank, the department noted.
Chinook salmon are threatened by drought in the American west exacerbated by climate change.
The water level in many rivers has decreased and the water has grown warmer, while the construction of dams and canals have also put the salmon at risk.
The fish migrate through rivers and swim to the ocean where they reach maturity and can remain for many years, before migrating back to their native rivers to spawn and die.
Rivers affected by drought that lack the necessary waterflow or unusually warm water can disrupt the cycle, and wildlife officials transport hatchery-raised juvenile salmon to the sea every year.
Road transportation of salmon began in the 1980s but has increased in recent years as the decline in salmon has become worse.
The numerous dams and canals that support the region’s cities and farms have also taken up 80 percent of the habitats where salmon can spawn.
The smolts lost in last week’s accident account for about 20 percent of the total to be released in Oregon’s Imnaha River this year, according to officials.
The 77,000 fish that escaped into Lookingglass Creek will likely return there in 2026 and 2027 to produce approximately 350-700 additional adults.
