Farmed salmon capable of eating wild fish: biologist

Judith Lavoie
October 18,2009
The Times Colonist

A wild Pacific salmon smolt found in the stomach of an Atlantic salmon on the lam shows escaped farm fish are capable of hunting prey, says a vocal opponent of open-net pens near wild salmon migration routes.

The smolt was found in the stomach of one of an estimated 40,000 fish that escaped last week from fish-farming company Marine Harvest Canada's Port Elizabeth farm in the Broughton Archipelago.

Biologist Alexandra Morton said she examined stomachs of 20 escapees and at least one had been hunting during its two days on the loose. "It was a 12-pound male Atlantic and it also had some other fish in its intestine," Morton said.

It's extremely unusual for a farm fish to hunt prey, according to Clare Backman, Marine Harvest director of environmental operations. "It is certainly outside our experience. Our fish are cued in on little brown pellets," Backman said, adding the incident has been investigated and two studies found no interception of wild fish.

 Read the full story in The Times Colonist

For background news stories on the October 21st Atlantic salmon escapement, click here.