NO DIPPING DRIED UP DEAD OSMERIADE ! DEY'S enDANGERED.

Hopefully, this report of dead fish isn't from enviro reporter for the Big O or other progressive organ. I know it's been a decade since the last good run. And that is probably tied to Global Warming/Climate Change/Obama Green initiative. But sriously folks, it isn't. One can actually o out to the mouth of the Sandy or other local tributaries, and scoop them up with nets.

I noticed a similar phenomenon last weekend at Sauvie Island. Seems like most of the fish had spots or weird mucus like bumps (mostly on the head looking kind of like a helmet). Even odder, lots of still living fish were within 10 or 15 feet of shore, but erratically swimming in circles, skimming the surface, or even swimming tilted flat on their side. Lots were still, but the began the erratic swimming when a wave disturbed them. One even dove straight to the bed head first and then just sort of hovered perpendicular for a while.

I'm not the best at fish identification, and have never seen a smelt, but hey looked more like juvenille salmon to me. I've heard of whirlling disease, but couldn't find anything online that would match to what I saw.

I would love an exlplanation from a knowledgeable reader.

I remember smelt...
Good eating when cleaned, coated in egg and corn meal and gently fried.

Smolts or smelts? Anyone know? Or why they are dead?

Smelt runs always seemed pretty unpredictable to me. One year feast, another famine. I do know that there are plenty of people paying no attention to the edict that they are "endangered" and should be left alone.

The next thing we'll be hearing about is a big nix on the Tualatin crawfish festival.

Spawned smelt, from the look of them in the photo with the footprints and the shape of the fish. I've seen a lot of smelt; used to live on the Sandy 40 years ago, and could mosey out the back yard to the river to net some.