Smaller sockeye are part of a larger trend of shrinking salmon
The sockeye returning to Bristol Bay this year are smaller. The average fish this summer weighs just 4.5 pounds down more than half a pound from 2020, according to data from the Mckinley Research Group.
That has been a trend over the past four decades, as increasingly smaller fish have returned to the bay amid larger salmon runs and warming oceans. That’s according to Dan Schindler, a fisheries professor at the University of Washington who has researched Bristol Bay salmon for decades.
“The size of fish has declined for their age. So the size of 2-ocean fish has been declining slowly over time, and the size of 3-ocean fish has been slowly declining over time,” he said.
From left to right, Young, Bong and Jae Lee. Their daughter, Sue, is in California studying to become a dentist.
Credit Brian Venua/KDLG
The Twin Dragon restaurant was located above the Grant Aviation building at the Dillingham airport, up a steep set of stairs.
The Twin Dragon selling equipment and leftover items from operation.
Credit Brian Venua/KDLG
In a small room with windows overlooking the runway, Young and Bong Lee cooked and served Chinese food for 30 years.
The Lees, who are Korean, moved to Dillingham and opened the Twin Dragon in 1991. Their kids, Jae and Sue, grew up around the restaurant waiting tables and helping clean.
Bristol Bay Fisheries Report: July 13, 2021 kdlg.org - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from kdlg.org Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
City Hall, September 2020.
Credit Izzy Ross/KDLG
The City of Dillingham will reconsider its travel restrictions and mask requirements in public areas this week.
Interim City Manager Chris Hladick said he needs to base changes to the current emergency order on measurable factors, like the city’s vaccination rate.
“The authorizing ordinance requires that metrics are developed for decision-making,” he said. “I published those metrics on the city’s website and they’re out there for public consumption.”
Hladick pointed out that 75% of Dillingham’s eligible population is vaccinated, and that there have been very few cases in the past four months.
Bristol Bay Fisheries Report: July 6, 2021 kdlg.org - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from kdlg.org Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.