December 8, 2025 — On a tributary of the Clatskanie River, near Astoria, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife has set up a “hatchbox.”
It’s basically six large barrels: three that filter the stream water and three that carry trays of salmon eggs so the water can flow over them.
Tom Stahl, with the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, said hatchboxes can be useful tools in the attempt to restore salmon to local waterways.
When salmon eggs in the barrels turn into tiny fish, usually around January, they’ll be swept into the stream. Essentially, the hatchbox protects the eggs from predators while they grow. Hatchboxes can also be used to bring fish eggs from other locations and introduce them into a new stream.
Older Oregonians may remember hatchboxes from school, where they were used to illustrate the salmon’s lifecycle. But over the years hatchboxes have fallen out of favor, largely because the fish they release compete with wild salmon.