"California officials are warning nearly all juvenile chinook salmon in the Sacramento River could die due to abnormally hot underwater conditions as heat waves continue to bake the West.
There could be a "near-complete loss" of the young endangered species of salmon because temperatures above 100 degrees for extended periods of time are overheating the river, making it uninhabitable for the fish to grow beyond their egg stage, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) confirmed to CNN on Tuesday.
"This persistent heat dome over the West Coast will likely result in earlier loss of ability to provide cool water and subsequently, it is possible that all in-river juveniles will not survive this season," CDFW said in a statement.
California, among other Western states including Oregon and Washington, has been experiencing extremely high temperatures in recent weeks. But drought conditions in the Golden State are especially taxing, with much of the state under severe or exceptional drought, according to the US Drought Monitor."
