Solar Eclipse May Have Freed 305,000 Atlantic Salmon In Pacific Waters

While Americans were poking holes into cereal boxes and planning solar eclipse parties this past Saturday, 305,000 Atlantic salmon escaped from nets near Cypress Islands off of Washington State.

The Seattle Times reports that the fish were being treated for a bacterial infection at a Cooke Aquaculture fish farm when rough tides and currents caused by Monday's solar eclipse damaged the nets and freed the salmon. A statement released by Cooke states that a lot of fish are still contained at the farm, but there's no saying how many salmon escaped. However, the net was carrying 3 million pounds of salmon at the time of the incident and each fish weighed in at about 10 pounds.

The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife is now concerned the Atlantic salmon may pose a threat to local Pacific salmon. They're encouraging recreational fishers to catch as many Atlantic salmon as soon as possible.