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Salmon Return To Marsh Creek After 50-Year Absence

BRENTWOOD (KCBS) — The return of salmon along Marsh Creek near Brentwood is giving hikers a sight not seen in more than 50 years and according to one expert, it's not just a coincidence.

The location in Contra Costa runs roughly from Mt. Diablo to the Delta and is producing the return of the big-time travelers according to Diane Burgis of Friends of Marsh Creek Watershed.

Salmon Return To Marsh Creek After 50-Year Absence

She said the salmon are back in the upper portion of the creek to spawn.

"They've gone to Japan or Alaska. They've been swimming around the Pacific, hanging out, doing what salmon do. Then there's some inner instinct that says it's time to go back to where I came from and go spawn," she explained.

"They are using the fish ladder and they are getting higher up to better spawning areas with trees and it meanders a little bit and its got the gravel there that's perfect for building their nests.

She said a group of volunteers has worked with several agencies to create conditions along Marsh Creek to help salmon swim upstream more easily, with the ultimate goal of increasing the salmon population.

(Copyright 2012 by CBS San Francisco. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

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