Tracking salmon as they move past Columbia River dams just got a little easier. Scientists are using a new tag so small that researchers can inject it with a syringe into the fishes' bellies.

Researchers at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and the Army Corps of Engineers have been working with tags since 2001. This newest version is the smallest yet, about the size of two grains of rice. The older tags are three times heavier.

The tags track how salmon travel through dams. Researchers hopes that the information they collect can help make dams more fish friendly.

"It really opens the door for letting us understand what these fish are doing and when so that we can make good, sound decisions," said Brad Eppard, a fishery biologist with the Corps.

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