* Record warm ocean temperatures pose threat to B.C. salmon

Record warm ocean temperatures combined with low, unusually warm rivers pose a double threat to B.C. salmon, prompting officials to curtail some fisheries.

​The reduced fisheries are part of a cautious approach to ensure that a healthy number of salmon return to river spawning grounds.

Ocean scientist Ian Perry said two unusual weather factors have dealt simultaneous blows to B.C. salmon numbers; Higher than normal ocean temperatures and warmer and lower river levels.

Perry said warmer ocean conditions — up to three degrees higher than normal -- arrived in the northeast Pacific Ocean in early 2014.

Federal scientists say water temperatures in the northeast Pacific are approximately 3 C above normal. (Fisheries and Oceans Canada)

The warm water killed off some of the nutritious food that salmon normally eat and helped breed more predators.  As a result, the younger salmon that swam to sea after the warm spell struck might not survive or return thinner and weaker.