The Keystone and the Money Tree

Salmon are the money tree. The keystone species. They hold it all together. Much of Alaska's economy, and its ecosystems, depend directly or indirectly upon robust populations of salmon. The commercial fishing industry: obvious. The guided sport fishing industry: obvious. Commercial crabbing: less obvious. Every summer and fall, salmon spawn up anadromous streams, spawn, die, and flush out to the brackish tidal waters where thousands of crabs lay in wait for all of that organic debris to feast upon. Wildlife watching: less obvious. Bears, whales, orca, porpoises, seals, sea lions, eagles, gulls, mink, otters. All of these species heavily feed on salmon every year. Healthy forests: even less obvious. Birds and mammals take salmon carcasses away from the stream and into the forest throughout the summer, eating what they want, and depositing the rest of that nutrient-rich organic debris throughout the forest. That discarded organic debris leaches invaluable nutrients into the forest soils, thus creating healthier botanic communities and larger trees. Recent studies have clearly indicated salmon DNA in trees throughout the Tongass National Forest. Those tree roots are sucking up the nutrients oozing into the forest floor.

If salmon disappear, a lot of Alaska's beauty and wildness will also disappear. Salmon jobs will disappear. Crabbing jobs will disappear. Tourism jobs will disappear. Wildlife will disappear. The biggest trees won't be quite as healthy. And people don't recognize this fact. Salmon hold it all together. It's the money tree that keeps on giving, as long as you pluck a few leaves every year rather than chopping down the whole thing for a few quick bucks. Yet some industries are actively pursuing measures that would significantly impact salmon habitat, and thus the whole chain of events just described. Think it's a case of simply "crying wolf?" Take a look at the Salmon River in Idaho. That river wasn't arbitrarily named. It used to have tremendous runs of salmon only a century ago. How many salmon spawn up the Salmon River these days? Zero. How many commercial fishing and tourism jobs are generated on that river from salmon today? Zero. What would the ecosystem and landscape look like today if the keystone species hadn't been removed? Hard to know... The same can be said for dozens of major rivers throughout Idaho, Washington, Oregon, and California. Salmon numbers aren't nearly what they used to be at best. At worst, the salmon are entirely gone. And thus, the corresponding wildlife, habitat, and potential industries are gone as well.

Whenever you read or hear about a resource issue that could potentially affect salmon, understand the value of the fish. They're what hold this state together.

A few pink salmon considering a nice redd - the area in the river's gravel bed in which females will deposit their eggs and males will later fertilize.

Death next to life. The cycle. Dozens of salmon carcasses litter the shore, while living salmon continue to spawn upstream.


More carcasses. These salmon have already spawned and ultimately died. Bears, mink, otter, crabs, eagles, gulls, insects, and other bacteria will devour these carcasses, continuing the complex and healthy ecological web that makes Alaska such a magnificent place. Think of all of the rivers, streams, and tributaries littered with this much organic debris throughout Alaska. All of that organic matter isn't just taking up space. It's feeding the whole ecosystem. Take away all of that invaluable organic material, all of those nutrients, and watch the whole system (and the local economy) deteriorate...

A couple of good lookin' dead beats.

The remains of a salmon after a few tide cycles. Something's been feasting on this slimy body...