Stripping Salmon.

Today's trip with my aquaculture course was to the Strathdon hatchery. Upon arriving we were shown the traps used to catch the fish from the river to be stripped and their holding area where they're kept until they are ready to be stripped.

Next we were taken into the hatchery and shown several of the fish being stripped. First the salmon are subjected to some anesthetic before the females are noosed to hold them still and their eggs either exit due to gravity or are pushed out of their cavity. Once the eggs have been collected in a dry container the males are then stripped into the bowls too. Finally water is added to the mix to activate the eggs and milk before excess milk being rinsed off to prevent congealing.

Because salmon return to the river in runs they attempt as best they can to mix the eggs and milk of the same runs (either spring, summer or autumn runs).

The eggs that are fertilized are then kept until their appropriate time and planted in artificial reds in the gravel of the river beds.