Mon, Nov 24, 2003 page2

• Unique salmon makes a splash

  NATIONAL TREASURE The rare Formosan landlocked salmon, which had disappeared from most of the country's rivers, is on the comeback trail after successful propagation

  • By Lindy Yeh / STAFF REPORTER
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  As the population of the Formosan Landlocked Salmon in the Chichiawan Stream has been estimated at over 3,000 for two consecutive years, researchers and officials are planning to take the ambitious step to release propagated adults back into their historical home stream -- the Sichihlan Stream -- as well as the Kashe Stream next year.

  "The salmon population this summer and winter has been estimated at over 3,000, thanks to the mild climate that has stabilized the aquatic environment of the Chichiawan Stream," said Liao Lin-yan (廖林彥), a doctoral student specializing in landlocked salmon and an associate technical specialist at the Shei-Pa National Park.

  

  A stretch of the Chichiawan Stream on Wuling farm, where the Formosan Landlocked Salmon still thrive.

  PHOTO: LINDY YEH

  There are over 1,000 adult fish and three thousand juveniles at a temporary salmon propagation center in the park. According to Liao, a detailed count by researchers of salmon in the Chichiawan Stream will only be finalized on Dec. 8.

  

  Visitors can easily spot salmon preparing to mate from a bridge across the stream on Wuling Farm.

  PHOTO: LINDY YEH

  The park also wants to inaugurate a salmon exhibition center located on Wuling Farm next year, if the authorities approve that the live propagated fish be shown to the public.

  The Formosan Landlocked Salmon's historical home in Taiwan were the tributaries of the Tachia River, the catchment area of which is mainly the "big Taichung area." The Kashe Stream is located in Nantou County.

  "Our farmers have successfully bred rainbow trout in the Kashe Stream, and this makes us confident that we can breed salmon in the same water," said Wang Ching-ming (汪靜明), an environmental education professor at National Taiwan Normal University and also the first researcher to receive a PhD on this fish.

  The rainbow trout is also a landlocked cold-water fish and the aquatic environment it demands is very similar to that of the Formosan landlocked salmon.

  "What worries me is the opposition from some conservative conservationists. They oppose the idea of exhibiting the fish, be they wild or propagated ones. The are even against the release of the fish in water outside the upstream portion of the Chichiawan Stream," Wang said.

  In fact, Wang's main frustration comes from bureaucracy. Officials in charge tend to take extreme caution regarding decisions for fear of criticism from the legislature and the public. With NT$200 million invested over the past 20 years on the fish and few breakthroughs recorded, related officials are under tremendous budgetary and administrative pressure.

  One fish, for example, equals an investment of NT$250,000 to NT$300,000. Though the Wildlife Conservation Law (野生動物保育法) grants the local government the power to approve the exhibition of endangered live species, the signs are that the Taichung County Government may not be willing to approve such a request. The county government would probably appeal to the Cabinet-level Council of Agriculture Affairs (COA) for approval.

  The reason is simple. Since the salmon is so precious and selective about its environment, who will be prepared to shoulder the responsibility if any fish died during the exhibition? One can imagine the extreme complications that the release plan could imply.

  "I am not afraid. I am ready to wage a paper battle against my opponents. I want history to judge them," Wang said.

  Purpose

  "After all, we do not breed the fish for the sake of propagation. Our purpose is to make them survive again in the wild and educate the public in the process," he said.

  The opposition groups fear the fish would die outside the Chichiawan Stream. They also disagree with having any public exhibitions. They think an exhibition would be a flamboyant move placing the fish's lives at risk.

  "Our main concern is that repeated propagation of such a small group of fish will restrict its gene pool. This is why we are not keen on releasing them into the Chichiawan Stream, which has also reached its capacity in terms of food and space," said Fang Kuo-yun (方國運), head of the resources conservation division of the council's forestry department.

  Asked if the COA would approve the national park's plan to reintroduce the fish in the Sichihlan River and Kashe Stream, Fang said, " It all depends on how they make their proposal."

  Apparently, Wang and the national park's ambitions are supported by the public. The major evidence of this is that more and more visitors and school children have rushed to Wuling Farm, expecting to see the fish. A big stretch of the upstream portion of the Chichiawan Stream is located on Wuling Farm.

  During the mating season in November, the fish appear in shallow areas where the current is slow. The females lay eggs in these areas to ensure that the eggs settle down among the rocks and won't be destroyed by violent currents.

  Easily seen

  Visitors can easily spot the salmon in the shallow water from a bridge across the stream. On the downside, a few visitors have ignored regulations and trampled areas on the riverbanks while trying to catch sight of the fish.

  In order to protect the salmon from pollution and human disturbance, any agricultural activities as well as visitors are forbidden within 50m of the riverbanks.

  However, adults as well as children are excited by the reappearance of the fish. Parents are telling their children the history of the salmon, dubbed the "national treasure" fish.

  Not only is the salmon an indigenous fish, but it is also a "living fossil" that contains precious clues to Taiwan's geological history.

  The Formosan landlocked salmon is a cold-water fish that lives in water of around 17?C.

  Ice age

  During the ice age, the fish apparently swam upstream in many Taiwanese rivers to lay their eggs. When the ice melted and the water temperature increased, groups of salmon became "homeless" and were blocked off in Taiwan's rivers. Since then, the salmon's fate has been bound with Taiwan's environmental evolution.

  The fish was first discovered during the Japanese occupation and was found to be the most southerly landlocked salmon on Earth. The Japanese attached great importance to the fish and listed it as a national asset of historical importance.

  The salmon used to be a staple of the indigenous Atayan people's diet. In a bid to protect the fish, the Japanese issued a ban on human activities within 300m of the rivers where they thrived.

  Before the 1970s, the salmon could be found in many tributaries of the Tachia River, including the Sichihlan Stream. With the urban development of the " greater Taichung area" and the building of many reservoirs and cross-island roads, trees were cut down and rivers were polluted. Without the protective shade of the forest, the water temperature of the rivers kept increasing. The salmon's habitat in Taiwan therefore became smaller.

  Nowadays, their "homeland" is confined to the Chichiawan stream, and the environment continues to deteriorate. But researchers can't do much about the situation as the stream is under the control of many administrative agencies, who tend to work against each other.

  Authority

  The Cabinet-level Veterans Affairs Commission (VAC), for example, is a major candidate for blame. The VAC is the authority that runs Wuling Farm. The pesticide run-off produced by the farm remains a main source of pollution in the Chichiawan stream.

  Eutrophication, for instance, is a serious problem in the stream. The most visible change caused by eutrophication is excessive algal production that turns the water and rocks green. Since the excessive algae consume too much oxygen, fish and other aquatic animals die because of a lack of oxygen.

  "This is the last year of the VAC's six-year transformation plan. We hope the commission will keep its promises," Liao said.

  Six-year plan

  According to the six-year plan, the authority would put the vegetable farms and orchards to other non-polluting uses.

  However, considering its profits, the VAC still defies public pressure and is reluctant to completely give up its lucrative farming activities.

  "We have stopped farming 50m from the riverbanks. Instead, we have planted trees along the banks to protect the stream," said Lien Chin-ruei (連金瑞), the chief of Wuling Farm's production and marketing section. "Our ultimate goal is to decrease the farmland from 60 or so hectares to 37.92 hectares."

  Last year, for example, the farm's income from tourism, including tickets, hotel accommodation and tourist services, was between NT$60 million and NT$70 million. As maintenance and personnel costs are high, the net profit was only between 25 percent and 30 percent.

  On the other hand, the farm's agricultural income last year was almost equivalent to that of tourism. But the net profit was about 85 percent, because the authority gets an income from leasing the land to farmers.

  Rental of one hectare of farmland on Wuling Farm could be as high as NT$1.4 million a year.

  Fixed price

  "The price was fixed through public bidding," Lien said.

  The high price puzzles the public. However, it reveals the reason behind the farm's reluctance to completely give up agriculture, as the farm workers' bonuses are based on the amount of profit.

  The VAC was initially an organization for the welfare of retired soldiers, who fled to Taiwan with the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) in 1949. At present, farmers on the VAC's seven farms nationwide are all non-veterans, because the veteran soldiers are all in advanced old age.

  The public has been angry with the fact that the VAC's farms only exist to offer posts for retired generals and create loopholes for lucrative speculation in land.

  "The Formosan landlocked salmon are so bellicose that they are fighting among themselves all the time," Liao said, "I guess this is why they still survive after weathering so many natural and human-caused disasters."

  "They are exactly like the Taiwanese, who have to struggle for survival in a severe environment," Liao said.

  For your information

  Number of Formosan Landlocked Salmon in the Chichiawan Stream

  Spring Winter

  * 1987 1,800 1,155 * 1988 1,090 660 * 1989 1,136 606 * 1990 941 670 * 1991 679 616 * 1992 999 253 * 1993 943 278 * 1994 788 638 * 1995 565 2,495 * 1996 1,854 1,227 * 1997 1,870 1,718 * 1998 857 637 * 1999 494 782 * 2000 728 796 * 2001 346 408 * 2002 3,988 4,321 Source: Shei-Pa National Park
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