The March/April 2000 issue of Nature Conservancy magazine has an article
about the Kenai River in Alaska called New Ways to Live. TNC and the
residents see things happening there that happened to salmon decades ago in
the lower 48, and they're organizing at the community level to protect their
river. Well, it's hard to tell if they're truly organizing, but the article
showcases some citizens who are working to protect the river.
TNC scientists designated salmon a cornerstone species because it forms the
food base for the entire coastal ecosystem. Along that line, there is a
fair amount of information available regarding the effects of salmon runs as
a supply of nutrients to terrestrial ecosystems. An article in a recent
issue of Fisheries magazine showed that nitrogen and phosphorous carried
from the ocean to freshwater rivers in the bodies of salmon is now occurring
at a rate of less than 10% of historic levels. Many terrestrial animals
depend on nutrients of marine sources. 40 species of Southeast Alaskan
mammals and birds feed on salmon, according to the TNC article.
-- Jay DeLong Olympia, WA
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