(PORTLAND, OR) -- Pacific lamprey, a prehistoric fish native
to the Columbia River Basin and treasured by Native American people, are
returning to Oregon’s Umatilla River in record numbers.
From the late 1960s through the early 2000’s lamprey were
functionally extinct in the Umatilla Basin, and less than five years ago, only
a few-hundred Pacific lamprey returned to the Umatilla River each year. However, through efforts such as adult
translocation, scientists with the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian
Reservation have counted more the 2600 of the ancient fish migrating up the
eastern Oregon river to spawn this spring.
The Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla have worked for
nearly 25 years to increase lamprey numbers. The Bonneville Power
Administration has funded most of the tribe’s lamprey projects since the early
1990’s, with much of the money going toward lamprey research and improving
instream passage. Over the past 10 years, BPA ratepayers have invested just
over $5 million in the Umatilla Basin for lamprey.
“Lamprey are culturally important and a critical First Food
for tribes. And while they’ve been around for millions of years, until rather
recently, managers failed to understand their importance within the food web,”
says Aaron Jackson, fisheries biologist with the Confederated Tribes of the
Umatilla Indian Reservation. “Our focus now is to continue lamprey
supplementation actions to bolster the overall numbers of lamprey in the
Umatilla and other ceded area basins.”
“We understand the cultural significance of Pacific lamprey
to the tribes which is one reason we’ve funded lamprey projects in the
Umatilla,” says Lorri Bodi, vice president of Environment, Fish and Wildlife
with the Bonneville Power Administration. “As a food source for other
creatures, lamprey are also very important to a healthy functioning ecosystem
such as in the Umatilla River so it’s great to see our efforts paying off.”
Pacific lamprey spend the majority of their lives as tiny
larvae living in Northwest streams from three to seven years before migrating
out to sea. Adult lamprey have a sucker-like mouth that allows them to be
parasitic while in the ocean. They attach to fish and other marine mammals for
feeding. Lamprey usually live in the
ocean for one to three years before returning to fresh water to spawn. Similar
to salmon, lamprey die after spawning and their carcasses provide marine rich
nutrients to streams.
