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[silver ghost]

I just finished reading an article that is to be published in Outlook tomorrow regarding WV streamkeepers and their fish counts. It says they counted 12 'pink salmon' in a certain stream last year. I appreciate that this could be a mistake, but I do remember hearing from a valuable source that a handful of pinks were spotting bumping their noses against a fish fence at a small stream nearby, last year. Given that pinks only run every odd year, it seems peculiar that there be any in even years. The only rationale for them being there seems to be either strays from van isle, as I understand pinks run there every year, OR they were jacks. But this brought me to my main question...do pink jacks come back after one year just like the coho and chinook do? If not then I wonder why these pinks came back last year to lower mainland streams, given the far distance between here and vancouver island as an explanation for the strays

[nickredway]

I don't know about pink jacks but there are a tiny number of pinks that run on even years.

[silver ghost]

I don't know about pink jacks but there are a tiny number of pinks that run on even years.

hmm, that's kinda cool. Is that just by coincidence - attributable to strays? or was there traditionally a run of pinks on even years but just declined for whatever reason, I wonder?

[nickredway]

I don't know why.

[bigblue]

I have never caught a pink jack so far. Anyone else caught one?

[FlyFishin Magician]

I just finished reading an article that is to be published in Outlook tomorrow regarding WV streamkeepers and their fish counts. It says they counted 12 'pink salmon' in a certain stream last year. I appreciate that this could be a mistake, but I do remember hearing from a valuable source that a handful of pinks were spotting bumping their noses against a fish fence at a small stream nearby, last year. Given that pinks only run every odd year, it seems peculiar that there be any in even years. The only rationale for them being there seems to be either strays from van isle, as I understand pinks run there every year, OR they were jacks. But this brought me to my main question...do pink jacks come back after one year just like the coho and chinook do? If not then I wonder why these pinks came back last year to lower mainland streams, given the far distance between here and vancouver island as an explanation for the strays

No - I don't believe there are pink jacks.  Remember, pinks are only 2 years old.  Pinks do run every year.  In our local streams (south part of the province) the main run is in the odd year (as we all know).  The even year can have some fish returning, albeit the run will be very small.  The fish will be 2 years old, just like their odd year brothers and sisters.  Because the fish only live for 2 years, the odd/even year fish never mix and the cycle doesn't change.  Too bad, as it would be great to have massive pink runs every year!!!  

[Easywater]

My Dad was involved in a DFO project to start an even year pink run in Jones creek in the 1960s.

I believe that they released a large number of fry into the creek but unfortunately, it didn't work out.

He did say that they caught a number of their new pinks in a fish wheel above Hope 2 years later.

[mbowers]

Pinks CAN return as jacks:  http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1577/1548-8659%281984%294%3C335%3AROYPSI%3E2.0.CO%3B2#preview  The paper even tells you how to do it: warm ocean water when they hit the sea.  The pinks just don't seem to hit jack conditions very often.  They are also apparently very good at wandering to other streams.

The pink jacks will mostly be less than 12" so you probably can't retain them anywhere.  People would have to correctly species ID the very small fish they just caught before release AND report it for you to hear about pink jacks: how many people are going to do that? 

The jacks are probably also on the menu for the larger male pinks in the school and certainly all the springs, coho, seals and whales they have to pass by on the way to the river.  It probably really sucks to be the smallest, slowest fish in the school when predators start chasing.

[silver ghost]

Pinks CAN return as jacks:  http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1577/1548-8659%281984%294%3C335%3AROYPSI%3E2.0.CO%3B2#preview  The paper even tells you how to do it: warm ocean water when they hit the sea.  The pinks just don't seem to hit jack conditions very often.  They are also apparently very good at wandering to other streams.

The pink jacks will mostly be less than 12" so you probably can't retain them anywhere.  People would have to correctly species ID the very small fish they just caught before release AND report it for you to hear about pink jacks: how many people are going to do that? 

The jacks are probably also on the menu for the larger male pinks in the school and certainly all the springs, coho, seals and whales they have to pass by on the way to the river.  It probably really sucks to be the smallest, slowest fish in the school when predators start chasing.

cool, it would be neat to catch one

[Dave]

My Dad was involved in a DFO project to start an even year pink run in Jones creek in the 1960s.

I believe that they released a large number of fry into the creek but unfortunately, it didn't work out.

He did say that they caught a number of their new pinks in a fish wheel above Hope 2 years later.

I vaguely remember that project and do recall very few even year pinks for a few cycles.
Would love to know your Dad's name as I probably knew him; if your'e not comfortable posting his name please email me at Davidpbarnes@shaw.ca

[steelie-slayer]

i remember catching a pink on the campbell river 2 summers ago and it was a jack only about 10-12", only one i have ever seen.

[FlyFishin Magician]

Pinks CAN return as jacks:  http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1577/1548-8659%281984%294%3C335%3AROYPSI%3E2.0.CO%3B2#preview  The paper even tells you how to do it: warm ocean water when they hit the sea.  The pinks just don't seem to hit jack conditions very often.  They are also apparently very good at wandering to other streams.

The pink jacks will mostly be less than 12" so you probably can't retain them anywhere.  People would have to correctly species ID the very small fish they just caught before release AND report it for you to hear about pink jacks: how many people are going to do that? 

The jacks are probably also on the menu for the larger male pinks in the school and certainly all the springs, coho, seals and whales they have to pass by on the way to the river.  It probably really sucks to be the smallest, slowest fish in the school when predators start chasing.

Wow.  Well there you go.  However, it sounds like pink jacks are extremely rare as indicated by the abstract.  In any case, the pink salmon referred to by the OP were not jacks.  It is interesting what the environment can do to alter the phenotype of an organism...

[Dave]

I vaguely remember that project and do recall very few even year pinks for a few cycles.
Would love to know your Dad's name as I probably knew him

Thanks Easywater

[grease line]

Two years in a row, clients of mine caught a pink jack in the exact same spot. Both fish were fat, chrome and about 10" long. Weird.

[BCfisherman97]

I managed a chum that was about 14 inches long today.