Following a powerful earthquake in the Pacific Ocean on July 30, fishing communities in Russia’s remote Kamchatka Peninsula raised alarms over a sudden drop in the vital salmon run. Local fishermen observed a noticeable decrease in salmon entering spawning rivers, sparking fears that the seismic event had disrupted one of the region’s most important economic and ecological cycles. However, leading Russian scientists have stepped in to quell these concerns, presenting a different explanation for the phenomenon.
According to the Kamchatka branch of Russia’s Federal Research Institute of Fisheries and Oceanography (VNIRO), the decline in salmon numbers was not linked to the earthquake but was an expected part of their natural migration cycle. By the end of July, the peak run for major species like pink, chum, and sockeye salmon had largely concluded. Institute Director Nina Shpigalskaya noted that with a regional catch already totaling approximately 205,500 tons by that date, the vast majority of the fish had either been caught or had already entered their native rivers, making the subsequent slowdown in early August a predictable event.
While this specific earthquake did not impact the salmon migration, scientists clarify that seismic activity can have indirect effects. The powerful homing instinct that drives salmon to their spawning grounds is generally impervious to distant tremors. However, if an earthquake causes significant water agitation at river mouths, fish may temporarily halt their journey in coastal waters until conditions normalize, a behavior briefly observed in some areas this season. A more significant risk can come from earthquake-induced mudflows, which can physically block rivers or smother eggs, though this was not a factor in the recent event.
With the seismological situation in the region now stable, the main Kamchatka salmon season is drawing to a close as planned. The run is expected to conclude within the next two weeks, with only coho salmon fishing continuing into mid-September. Experts are confident that the remainder of the season will proceed according to the natural and well-understood patterns of Pacific salmon migration, confirming that nature’s cycles, in this case, were more powerful than the tremors from the deep.