California’s endangered winter-run Chinook salmon appear to be facing an new threat – anchovies. Researchers say the salmon are feasting too heavily on anchovies, a fish swarming the California coast in record numbers. Unfortunately anchovies carry an enzyme called thiaminase, which breaks down thiamine – a vitamin essential to cell function in all living things. Scientists first discovered the problem in 2020, after hatchery workers noticed salmon fry swimming in circles before dying. Scientists have proposed measures such as injecting fish with vitamin B1 and dam bypasses for the salmon.
California’s Chinook Salmon Dying off Due to Anchovies
