Times are tough for the Winnemem Wintu – a small Native American tribe in California. The Winnemem rely on the Chinook salmon but since the construction of a dam near sacramento in the 40′s blocking some of the salmon ‘runs’, the number of salmon returning each year to breed has been declining.
Coincidentally, the Winnemem have been declining in numbers too.
The tribe believe their fate is linked to that of the fish and that the building of the dam broke a covenant between them and the salmon.
Whilst the salmon seem to be deserting their traditional haunts on California, they are flourishing in New Zealand. Now, 2 dozen Winnemem have raised the money to visit New Zealand and perform a traditional ceremony to persuade the Salmon (who they claim are descended from eggs taken from their Chinook ancestors many years ago) to return to their ancestral waters.
And if that doesn’t work, they plan to ask the New Zealand authorities if they can take some eggs back with them to restock the waters in California
P.S. If you want to learn more about the Winnemem Wintu, you can follow them on Facebook
