In The Moment: How to Save a Species

Saving an endangered species doesn’t only entail tedious negotiations by politicians but also through a massive amount of research and labor.

The Craig Brook National Fish Hatchery in East Orland has been at it for 125 years in an attempt to save the iconic  Atlantic Salmon and keep them swimming up and down our rivers.  The work of fisheries biologists is not exactly what you would call glamorous.
On a recent assignment, I had the privilege of being in the middle of it  and went behind the scenes to photograph the process of saving salmon. The hatchery workers moved fast and efficiently to minimize the time fish were out of the water, those moments were my opportunities to capture a few images.
Catching, holding and stripping eggs from a fish that is 10 or even 15 pounds of slippery muscle is labor intensive. Not to mention the fact that they do all this in a fish friendly environment, that is relatively uncomfortable for people.
They are working to save a species and if they are successful they will put themselves out of work.  But they’re working to keep alive a dream.  A dream of many fishermen to again one day hook a wild Atlantic Salmon.

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