Wrangell Sentinel -

ORONO, Maine (AP)- Salmon counters found fewer of the endangered fish in Maine’s Penobscot River last year than in any year since 2016.

Atlantic salmon are listed under the Endangered Species Act in the U.S., as the country’s only remaining wild populations of the fish are found in a few Maine rivers. The Penobscot is vitally important to the future of the fish, and salmon returns there are watched closely.

Only 561 salmon were counted in the Penobscot last year. That was the lowest number since 2016, when 503 fish were found, the Bangor Daily News reported. The count was even lower in...