Salmon

For other uses, see Salmon (disambiguation).

Illustrations of how the principal male Pacific salmon species appear when they are spawning (not proportional to actual sizes)

Salmon (/ˈsæmən/) is the common name for several species of fish in the family Salmonidae. Several other fish in the same family are called trout; the difference is often said to be that salmon migrate and trout are resident, but this distinction does not strictly hold true. Salmon live along the coasts of both the North Atlantic (one migratory species Salmo salar) and Pacific Oceans (approximately a dozen species of the genus Oncorhynchus), and have also been introduced into the Great Lakes of North America. Salmon are intensively produced in aquaculture in many parts of the world.

Typically, salmon are anadromous: they are born in fresh water, migrate to the ocean, then return to fresh water to reproduce. However, there are populations of several species that are restricted to fresh water through their life. Folklore has it that the fish return to the exact spot where they were born to spawn; tracking studies have shown this to be true, and this homing behavior has been shown to depend on olfactory memory.

Life cycle

Eggs in different stages of development. In some only a few cells grow on top of the yolk, in the lower right the blood vessels surround the yolk and in the upper left the black eyes are visible, even the little lens

Salmon fry hatching — the baby has grown around the remains of the yolk — visible are the arteries spinning around the yolk and little old drops, also the gut, the spine, the main caudal blood vessel, the bladder and the arcs of the gills

Salmon eggs are laid in freshwater streams typically at high latitudes. The eggs hatch into alevin or sac fry. The fry quickly develop into parr with camouflaging vertical stripes. The parr stay for six months to three years in their natal stream before becoming smolts, which are distinguished by their bright silvery colour with scales that are easily rubbed off. It is estimated that only 10% of all salmon eggs survive to this stage. The smolt body chemistry changes, allowing them to live in salt water. Smolts spend a portion of their out-migration time in brackish water, where their body chemistry becomes accustomed to osmoregulation in the ocean.

The salmon spend about one to five years (depending on the species) in the open ocean where they gradually become sexually mature. The adult salmon then return primarily to their natal stream to spawn. In Alaska, the crossing-over to other streams allows salmon to populate new streams, such as those that emerge as a glacier retreats. The precise method salmon use to navigate has not been established, though their keen sense of smell is involved. Atlantic salmon spend between one and four years at sea. (When a fish returns after just one year's sea feeding it is called a grilse in Canada, Britain and Ireland.) Prior to spawning, depending on the species, salmon undergo changes. They may grow a hump, develop canine teeth, develop a kype (a pronounced curvature of the jaws in male salmon). All will change from the silvery blue of a fresh run fish from the sea to a darker colour. Salmon can make amazing journeys, sometimes moving hundreds of miles upstream against strong currents and rapids to reproduce. Chinook and sockeye salmon from central Idaho, for example, travel over 900 miles (1,400 km) and climb nearly 7,000 feet (2,100 m) from the Pacific ocean as they return to spawn. Condition tends to deteriorate the longer the fish remain in fresh water, and they then deteriorate further after they spawn, when they are known as kelts. In all species of Pacific salmon, the mature individuals die within a few days or weeks of spawning, a trait known as semelparity. Between 2% and 4% of Atlantic salmon kelts survive to spawn again, all females. However, even in those species of salmon that may survive to spawn more than once (iteroparity), post-spawning mortality is quite high (perhaps as high as 40 to 50%.)

To lay her roe, the female salmon uses her tail (caudal fin), to create a low-pressure zone, lifting gravel to be swept downstream, excavating a shallow depression, called a redd. The redd may sometimes contain 5,000 eggs covering 30 square feet (2.8 m²). The eggs usually range from orange to red. One or more males will approach the female in her redd, depositing his sperm, or milt, over the roe. The female then covers the eggs by disturbing the gravel at the upstream edge of the depression before moving on to make another redd. The female will make as many as seven redds before her supply of eggs is exhausted.

male ocean phase Chinook

Male freshwater phase Chinook

Each year, the fish experiences a period of rapid growth, often in summer, and one of slower growth, normally in winter. This results in ring formation around an earbone called the otolith, (annuli) analogous to the growth rings visible in a tree trunk. Freshwater growth shows as densely crowded rings, sea growth as widely spaced rings; spawning is marked by significant erosion as body mass is converted into eggs and milt.

Freshwater streams and estuaries provide important habitat for many salmon species. They feed on terrestrial and aquatic insects, amphipods, and other crustaceans while young, and primarily on other fish when older. Eggs are laid in deeper water with larger gravel, and need cool water and good water flow (to supply oxygen) to the developing embryos. Mortality of salmon in the early life stages is usually high due to natural predation and human-induced changes in habitat, such as siltation, high water temperatures, low oxygen concentration, loss of stream cover, and reductions in river flow. Estuaries and their associated wetlands provide vital nursery areas for the salmon prior to their departure to the open ocean. Wetlands not only help buffer the estuary from silt and pollutants, but also provide important feeding and hiding areas.

Salmon that are not killed by other means show greatly accelerated deterioration (phenoptosis, or "programmed aging") at the end of their lives. Their bodies rapidly deteriorate right after they spawn as a result of the release of massive amounts of corticosteroids.

Species

The various species of salmon have many names, and varying behaviors.

Eosalmo driftwoodensis, the oldest known salmon fossil in the fossil record, helps scientists figure how the different species of salmon diverged from a common ancestor. The British Columbia salmon fossil provides evidence that the divergence between Pacific and Atlantic salmon had not yet occurred 40 million years ago. Both the fossil record and analysis of mitochondrial DNA suggest that the divergence occurred by 10 to 20 million years ago. This independent evidence from DNA analysis and the fossil record reject the glacial theory of salmon divergence.

Atlantic Ocean species

Atlantic salmon

The Atlantic Ocean has only one species of salmon, in the genus Salmo:

• Atlantic salmon, or salmon, (Salmo salar) reproduce in northern rivers on both coasts of the ocean.
  • Land-locked salmon (Salmo salar m. sebago) live in a number of lakes in eastern North America and in Northern Europe, for instance in lakes Great Lakes, Onega, Ladoga, Saimaa and Vänern. They are not a different species from the Atlantic salmon, but have independently evolved a non-migratory life cycle, which they maintain even when they can access the ocean.

Pacific Ocean species

Pacific species belong to the genus Oncorhynchus, some examples include:

• Cherry salmon or seema (Oncorhynchus masou) is found only in the western Pacific Ocean in Japan, Korea and Russia. There is also a land-locked subspecies known as the Taiwanese salmon or Formosan salmon (Oncorhynchus masou formosanum) in central Taiwan's Chi Chia Wan Stream.
• Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) is also known in the US as king or blackmouth salmon, and as spring salmon in British Columbia. Chinook are the largest of all Pacific salmon, frequently exceeding 30 lb (14 kg). The name Tyee is used in British Columbia to refer to Chinook over 30 pounds, and in Columbia River watershed especially large Chinook were once referred to as June Hogs. Chinook salmon are known to range as far north as the Mackenzie River and Kugluktuk in the central Canadian arctic.
• Chum salmon (Oncorhynchus keta) is known as dog, keta, or calico salmon in some parts of the US. This species has the widest geographic range of the Pacific species: south to the Sacramento River in California in the eastern Pacific and the island of Kyūshū in the Sea of Japan in the western Pacific; north to the Mackenzie River in Canada in the east and to the Lena River in Siberia in the west.

Male ocean phase Coho salmon

• Coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch) is also known in the US as silver salmon. This species is found throughout the coastal waters of Alaska and British Columbia and up most clear-running streams and rivers. It is also now known to occur, albeit infrequently, in the Mackenzie River.
• Pink salmon (Oncorhynchus gorbuscha), known as humpies in southeast and southwest Alaska, are found from northern California and Korea, throughout the northern Pacific, and from the Mackenzie River in Canada to the Lena River in Siberia, usually in shorter coastal streams. It is the smallest of the Pacific species, with an average weight of 3+1⁄2 to-.
• Sockeye salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka) is also known in the US as red salmon. This lake-rearing species is found south as far as the Klamath River in California in the eastern Pacific and northern Hokkaidō island in Japan in the western Pacific and as far north as Bathurst Inlet in the Canadian Arctic in the east and the Anadyr River in Siberia in the west. Although most adult Pacific salmon feed on small fish, shrimp and squid; sockeye feed on plankton that they filter through gill rakers. Kokanee salmon is a land-locked form of sockeye salmon.

Other species

• The huchen or Danube salmon (Hucho hucho), the largest permanent fresh water salmonid species.

Salmon fisheries

Spawning sockeye salmon in Becharof Creek, Becharof Wilderness, Alaska

The salmon has long been at the heart of the culture and livelihood of coastal dwellers. Many people of the Northern Pacific shore had a ceremony to honor the first return of the year. For many centuries, people caught salmon as they swam upriver to spawn. A famous spearfishing site on the Columbia River at Celilo Falls was inundated after great dams were built on the river. The Ainu, of northern Japan, trained dogs to catch salmon as they returned to their breeding grounds en masse. Now, salmon are caught in bays and near shore.

Salmon population levels are of concern in the Atlantic and in some parts of the Pacific. Alaska fishery stocks are still abundant, and catches have been on the rise in recent decades, after the state initiated limitations in 1972. Some of the most important Alaskan salmon sustainable wild fisheries are located near the Kenai River, Copper River, and in Bristol Bay. Fish farming of Pacific salmon is outlawed in the United States Exclusive Economic Zone, however, there is a substantial network of publicly funded hatcheries, and the State of Alaska's fisheries management system is viewed as a leader in the management of wild fish stocks. In Canada, returning Skeena River wild salmon support commercial, subsistence and recreational fisheries, as well as the area's diverse wildlife on the coast and around communities hundreds of miles inland in the watershed. The status of wild salmon in Washington is mixed. Out of 435 wild stocks of salmon and steelhead, only 187 of them were classified as healthy; 113 had an unknown status, 1 was extinct, 12 were in critical condition and 122 were experiencing depressed populations.

The Columbia River salmon population is now less than 3% of what it was when Lewis and Clark arrived at the river. Salmon canneries established by settlers beginning in 1866 had a strong negative impact on the salmon population. In his 1908 State of the Union address, U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt observed that the fisheries were in significant decline:

The salmon fisheries of the Columbia River are now but a fraction of what they were twenty—five years ago, and what they would be now if the United States Government had taken complete charge of them by intervening between Oregon and Washington. During these twenty—five years the fishermen of each State have naturally tried to take all they could get, and the two legislatures have never been able to agree on joint action of any kind adequate in degree for the protection of the fisheries. At the moment the fishing on the Oregon side is practically closed, while there is no limit on the Washington side of any kind, and no one can tell what the courts will decide as to the very statutes under which this action and non—action result. Meanwhile very few salmon reach the spawning grounds, and probably four years hence the fisheries will amount to nothing; and this comes from a struggle between the associated, or gill—net, fishermen on the one hand, and the owners of the fishing wheels up the river.

The commercial salmon fisheries in California have been either severely curtailed or closed completely in recent years, due to critically low returns on the Klamath and or Sacramento Rivers, causing millions of dollars in losses to commercial fishermen. Both Atlantic and Pacific salmon are popular sportfish.

Salmon populations now exist in all the Great Lakes. Coho stocks were planted in the late 1960s in response to the growing population of non-native alewife by the state of Michigan. Now Chinook (King), Atlantic, and Coho (silver) salmon are annually stocked in all Great Lakes by most bordering states and provinces. These populations are not self sustaining and do not provide much in the way of a commercial fishery, but have led to the development of a thriving sportfishery.

Aquaculture

Salmon farm in the archipelago of Finland.

Main article: Salmon in aquaculture

Salmon aquaculture is a major contributor to the world production of farmed finfish, representing about US$10 billion annually. Other commonly cultured fish species include: tilapia, catfish, sea bass, carp and bream. Salmon farming is significant in Chile, Norway, Scotland, Canada and the Faroe Islands, and is the source for most salmon consumed in America and Europe. Atlantic salmon are also, in very small volumes, farmed in Russia and the island of Tasmania, Australia.

Salmon are carnivorous and are currently fed a meal produced from catching other wild fish and other marine organisms. Salmon farming leads to a high demand for wild forage fish. Salmon require large nutritional intakes of protein, and consequently, farmed salmon consume more fish than they generate as a final product. To produce one pound of farmed salmon, products from several pounds of wild fish are fed to them. As the salmon farming industry expands, it requires more wild forage fish for feed, at a time when 75% of the world's monitored fisheries are already near to or have exceeded their maximum sustainable yield. The industrial scale extraction of wild forage fish for salmon farming then impacts the survivability of the wild predator fish who rely on them for food.

Work continues on substituting vegetable proteins for animal proteins in the salmon diet. Unfortunately, though, this substitution results in lower levels of the highly valued omega-3 fatty acid content in the farmed product.

Intensive salmon farming now uses open-net cages, which have low production costs, but have the drawback of allowing disease and sea lice to spread to local wild salmon stocks.

On a dry weight basis, 2–4 kg of wild-caught fish are needed to produce one kg of salmon.

Artificially incubated chum salmon

Another form of salmon production, which is safer, but less controllable, is to raise salmon in hatcheries until they are old enough to become independent. They are then released into rivers, often in an attempt to increase the salmon population. This system is referred to as ranching, and was very common in countries such as Sweden before the Norwegians developed salmon farming, but is seldom done by private companies, as anyone may catch the salmon when they return to spawn, limiting a company's chances of benefiting financially from their investment. Because of this, the method has mainly been used by various public authorities and nonprofit groups such as the Cook Inlet Aquaculture Association as a way of artificially increasing salmon populations in situations where they have declined due to overharvesting, construction of dams, and habitat destruction or fragmentation. Unfortunately, there can be negative consequences to this sort of population manipulation, including genetic "dilution" of the wild stocks, and many jurisdictions are now beginning to discourage supplemental fish planting in favour of harvest controls and habitat improvement and protection. A variant method of fish stocking, called ocean ranching, is under development in Alaska. There, the young salmon are released into the ocean far from any wild salmon streams. When it is time for them to spawn, they return to where they were released where fishermen can then catch them.

An alternative method to hatcheries is to use spawning channels. These are artificial streams, usually parallel to an existing stream with concrete or rip-rap sides and gravel bottoms. Water from the adjacent stream is piped into the top of the channel, sometimes via a header pond, to settle out sediment. Spawning success is often much better in channels than in adjacent streams due to the control of floods, which in some years can wash out the natural redds. Because of the lack of floods, spawning channels must sometimes be cleaned out to remove accumulated sediment. The same floods which destroy natural redds also clean them out. Spawning channels preserve the natural selection of natural streams, as there is no benefit, as in hatcheries, to use prophylactic chemicals to control diseases.

Farm-raised salmon are fed the carotenoids astaxanthin and canthaxanthin to match their flesh color to wild salmon.

Diseases and parasites

See also: Fish diseases and parasites

Henneguya salminicola, a myxozoan parasite commonly found in the flesh of salmonids on the West Coast of Canada, in coho salmon

According to Canadian biologist Dorothy Kieser, the myxozoan parasite Henneguya salminicola is commonly found in the flesh of salmonids. It has been recorded in the field samples of salmon returning to the Queen Charlotte Islands. The fish responds by walling off the parasitic infection into a number of cysts that contain milky fluid. This fluid is an accumulation of a large number of parasites.

Henneguya and other parasites in the myxosporean group have a complex life cycle, where the salmon is one of two hosts. The fish releases the spores after spawning. In the Henneguya case, the spores enter a second host, most likely an invertebrate, in the spawning stream. When juvenile salmon migrate to the Pacific Ocean, the second host releases a stage infective to salmon. The parasite is then carried in the salmon until the next spawning cycle. The myxosporean parasite that causes whirling disease in trout, has a similar life cycle. However, as opposed to whirling disease, the Henneguya infestation does not appear to cause disease in the host salmon — even heavily infected fish tend to return to spawn successfully.

According to Dr. Kieser, a lot of work on Henneguya salminicola was done by scientists at the Pacific Biological Station in Nanaimo in the mid-1980s, in particular, an overview report which states that "the fish that have the longest fresh water residence time as juveniles have the most noticeable infections. Hence in order of prevalence coho are most infected followed by sockeye, chinook, chum and pink." As well, the report says that, at the time the studies were conducted, stocks from the middle and upper reaches of large river systems in British Columbia such as Fraser, Skeena, Nass and from mainland coastal streams in the southern half of B.C. "are more likely to have a low prevalence of infection." The report also states "It should be stressed that Henneguya, economically deleterious though it is, is harmless from the view of public health. It is strictly a fish parasite that cannot live in or affect warm blooded animals, including man".

According to Klaus Schallie, Molluscan Shellfish Program Specialist with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, "Henneguya salminicola is found in southern B.C. also and in all species of salmon. I have previously examined smoked chum salmon sides that were riddled with cysts and some sockeye runs in Barkley Sound (southern B.C., west coast of Vancouver Island) are noted for their high incidence of infestation."

Sea lice, particularly Lepeophtheirus salmonis and various Caligus species, including C. clemensi and C. rogercresseyi, can cause deadly infestations of both farm-grown and wild salmon. Sea lice are ectoparasites which feed on mucus, blood, and skin, and migrate and latch onto the skin of wild salmon during free-swimming, planktonic nauplii and copepodid larval stages, which can persist for several days. Large numbers of highly populated, open-net salmon farms can create exceptionally large concentrations of sea lice; when exposed in river estuaries containing large numbers of open-net farms, many young wild salmon are infected, and do not survive as a result. Adult salmon may survive otherwise critical numbers of sea lice, but small, thin-skinned juvenile salmon migrating to sea are highly vulnerable. On the Pacific coast of Canada, the louse-induced mortality of pink salmon in some regions is commonly over 80%.

Environmental pressures

All species of Pacific salmon (not including steelhead) die shortly after spawning. This one was photographed at a spawning site along Eagle Creek in Oregon.

The population of wild salmon declined markedly in recent decades, especially North Atlantic populations which spawn in the waters of western Europe and eastern Canada, and wild salmon in the Snake and Columbia River system in northwestern United States. The decline is attributed to the following factors:

• Sea lice - transfer of parasites from open-net cage salmon farming, especially sea lice, has reduced numbers. The European Commission (2002) concluded, "The reduction of wild salmonid abundance is also linked to other factors but there is more and more scientific evidence establishing a direct link between the number of lice-infested wild fish and the presence of cages in the same estuary." It is reported that wild salmon on the west coast of Canada are being driven to extinction by sea lice from nearby salmon farms. For Atlantic salmon smolts, it takes as few as eight sea lice to kill the fish. On the Pacific Coast where the smolt are much smaller, only one or two can be critical, often resulting in death. In the Atlantic, sea lice have been a proven factor in both Norwegian and Scottish salmon declines. In the Western Atlantic, there has been little research at sea, but sea lice numbers in the period after 2000 do not appear to be a significant factor in the critical decline of endangered inner Bay of Fundy salmon. The situation may have been different in the 1980s and 1990s, but we are unlikely ever to know the factual history in that regard.
• Overfishing - in general, has reduced populations, especially commercial netting in the Faroes and Greenland. Several seafood sustainability guides have recommendations on which salmon fisheries are sustainable and which have negative impacts on salmon populations.
• Warming in ocean and river water can delay spawning and accelerate the transition to smolting.
• Ulcerative dermal necrosis - (UDN) infections of the 1970s and 1980s severely affected adult salmon in freshwater rivers.
• Habitat - the loss of suitable freshwater habitat, especially degradation of stream pools and reduction of suitable material for the excavation of redds has caused a reduction in spawning. Historically, stream pools were, to a large extent, created by beavers (see section below). With their extirpation, the nurturing function of these ponds was lost. Reduced retention of the nutrients brought by the returning adult salmon in stream pools has lowered populations. Without stream pools, dead adult salmon tend to be washed straight back down the streams and rivers, so the nutrients are not available for the hatchlings. The construction of dams, weirs, barriers and other "flood prevention" measures bring severe adverse impacts to river habitat and on the accessibility of those habitats to salmon, particularly in the northwest USA, where large numbers of dams have been built in many river systems, including over 400 in the Columbia River Basin. Other environmental factors, such as light intensity, water flow, or change in temperature, dramatically affects salmon during their migration season. Modern farming methods and various sources of pollution have resulted in loss of invertebrate diversity and population density in rivers, thus reducing food availability. Reduction in freshwater base flow in rivers and disruption of seasonal flows, because of diversions and extractions, hydroelectric power generation, irrigation schemes, barge transportation, and slackwater reservoirs, inhibit normal migratory processes and increase predation for salmon. Agricultural practices, such as the removal of riparian plants, destabilization of stream banks by livestock and irrigation processes, result in a loss of suitable low-gradient stream habitats.

Several governments and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) are sharing in research and habitat restoration efforts to relieve this situation.

• In the western Atlantic, the Atlantic Salmon Federation has developed a major sonic tracking technology program to understand the high at-sea mortality since the early 1990s. Ocean arrays are deployed across the Baie des Chaleurs and between Newfoundland and Labrador at the Strait of Belle Isle. Salmon have now been tracked half way from rivers, such as the Restigouche, to Greenland feeding grounds. Now, the first line of the Ocean Tracking Network initiative is installed by DFO and Dalhousie University of Halifax, from Halifax to the edge of the continental shelf. First results include Atlantic salmon travelling from the Penobscot River in Maine, the "anchor river" for US Atlantic salmon populations.
• In the northern Atlantic, the North Atlantic Salmon Fund, led by Icelandic entrepreneur Orri Vigfússon, has worked closely since 1989 with governments and fishermen for conservation. The conservation efforts are not limited to oceans, and a sustainable angling scheme has been developed in rivers, notably in Vopnafjörður, Iceland.
• Throughout the Pacific Rim, the Wild Salmon Center partners with communities, businesses, governments, and other non-profits to protect and preserve healthy salmon ecosystems and the biodiversity on which these ecosystems depend.

Results overall show estuary problems exist for some rivers, but issues involving feeding grounds at sea are impacting populations as well. In 2008, returns were markedly improved for Atlantic salmon on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean, but no one knows if this is a temporary improvement or sign of a trend.

• NOAA's Office of Protected Resources maintains a list of Endangered Species, the Endangered Species Act.
• Sweden has generated a protection program as part of its Biodiversity Action Plan.
• State of Salmon maintains an IUCN redlist of endangered salmon.
• The Kamchatka Peninsula, in the Russian Far East, contains the world's greatest salmon sanctuary.
• Bear Lake, Alaska, has been the site of salmon enhancement activities since 1962.

Alternative feed for hatcheries

One proposed alternative to the use of wild-caught fish as feed for the salmon, is the use of soy-based products. This should be better for the local environment of the fish farm, however, producing soy beans has a high environmental cost for the producing region.

Another promising alternative is a yeast-based, proteinaceous fermentation biomass (PFB). PFB is a co-product of bio-ethanol production. Studies have shown that the substitution of PFB products for engineered feed have resulted in equal (sometimes enhanced) growth in fish. With its increasing availability, this would address the problems of rising costs for buying hatchery fish feed.

Yet another attractive alternative is the increased use of seaweed. Seaweed provides essential minerals and vitamins for growing organisms. It offers the advantage of providing natural amounts of dietary fiber and having a lower glycemic load than grain-based fish meal. In the best-case scenario, widespread use of seaweed could yield a future in aquaculture that eliminates the need for land, freshwater, or fertilizer to raise fish.

Fishery pressures

A great threat to Pacific salmon conservation is commercial fishing. There are many methods of harvest for the commercial salmon fishing industry, such as trolling, seining, and gillnetting. Gillnets are an extremely size-selective method of harvest, where a long net is placed in the path of the salmon’s migration to their natal stream in hopes of entangling the salmon for commercial harvest. Fish too small to be caught pass through the net, fish too large cannot be entangled, only catching fish that fall somewhere in between. By selectively harvesting certain sizes of fish, governed by the mesh-size of the gillnet, some age-class and length-class fish are selectively removed from the population, progressively leaving phenotypically smaller spawners. Fecundity generally decreases with length. So, smaller fish produce fewer eggs than larger fish. There is also concern regarding the genetic information passed down from the fish. If the majority of spawning fish in a particular salmon run has gotten smaller due to the size-selective fishing methods, the run could eventually evolve to become smaller.

Gillnet size selectivity

Gillnets are designed to harvest a specific sized fish. For example, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife's 2010 Commercial Regulations had a 7-inch (180 mm) minimum mesh size restriction for Chinook, and a 5-inch (130 mm) minimum – 5.5-inch (140 mm) maximum for sockeye. Possible problems arising from this selective harvest are smaller reproducing adult fish, as well as the unexpected mortality of the fish which sustain injuries from the gillnet but are not retained in the fishery. Most salmon populations include several age classes, allowing for fish of different ages, and sizes, to reproduce with each other. A recent 2009 study looked at 59 years of catch and escapement data of Bristol Bay sockeye to determine age and size at maturity trends attributable to the selectivity of commercial gillnet harvests. The study found that the larger females (>550 mm) of all age classes were most susceptible to harvest. The study suggests that smaller, younger fish were more likely to successfully traverse the gillnet fishery and reproduce than the larger fish. The study also found that the average length of sockeye harvested from 1946–2005 was 8 mm larger than the sockeye who escaped the gillnet fishery to spawn, reducing the fecundity of the average female by 5%, or 104 eggs.

Gillnet-related mortality

If a salmon enters a gillnet, but manages to escape, it often sustains injuries. These injuries can lead to a lower degree of reproductive success. A study aimed at quantifying mortality of Bristol Bay sockeye salmon due to gillnet-related injuries found that 11 - 29% of sockeye sustained fishery-related injuries attributable to gillnets, 51% of those fish were expected to not reproduce.

Salmon and beavers

Beavers are archetypal ecosystem engineers; in the process of clear cutting and damming, beavers alter their ecosystem extensively. Beaver ponds can provide critical habitat for juvenile salmon. An example of this was seen in the years following 1818 in the Columbia River Basin. In 1818, the British government made an agreement with the U.S. government to allow U.S. citizens access to the Columbia catchment (see Treaty of 1818). At the time, the Hudson's Bay Company sent word to trappers to extirpate all furbearers from the area in an effort to make the area less attractive to U.S. fur traders. In response to the elimination of beavers from large parts of the river system, salmon runs plummeted, even in the absence of many of the factors usually associated with the demise of salmon runs. Salmon recruitment can be affected by beavers' dams because dams can:

• Slow the rate at which nutrients are flushed from the system; nutrients provided by adult salmon dying throughout the fall and winter remain available in the spring to newly-hatched juveniles
• Provide deeper water pools where young salmon can avoid avian predators
• Increase productivity through photosynthesis and by enhancing the conversion efficiency of the cellulose-powered detritus cycle
• Create low-energy environments where juvenile salmon put the food they ingest into growth rather than into fighting currents
• Increase structural complexity with many physical niches where salmon can avoid predators

Beavers' dams are able to nurture salmon juveniles in Estuarine tidal marshes where the salinity is less than 10 ppm. Beavers build small dams of generally less than 2 feet (60 cm) high in channels in the Myrtle zone. These dams can be overtopped at high tide and hold water at low tide. This provides refuges for juvenile salmon so they do not have to swim into large channels where they are subject to predation.

Salmon as food

salmon teriyaki

salmon in a market

Salmon is a popular food. Classified as an "oily fish", salmon is considered to be healthful due to the fish's high protein, high omega-3 fatty acids, and high vitamin D content. Salmon is also a source of cholesterol, with a range of 23–214 mg/100 g depending on the species. According to reports in the journal Science, however, farmed salmon may contain high levels of dioxins. PCB (polychlorinated biphenyl) levels may be up to eight times higher in farmed salmon than in wild salmon. Omega-3 content may also be lower than in wild-caught specimens, and in a different proportion to what is found naturally. Omega-3 comes in three types, alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA); wild salmon has traditionally been an important source of DHA and EPA, which are important for brain function and structure, among other things. The body can itself convert ALA omega-3 into DHA and EPA, but at a very inefficient rate (2–15%). Nonetheless, according to a 2006 study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, the benefits of eating even farmed salmon still outweigh any risks imposed by contaminants. The type of omega-3 present may not be a factor for other important health functions.

A simple rule of thumb is that the vast majority of Atlantic salmon available on the world market are farmed (almost 99%), whereas the majority of Pacific salmon are wild caught (greater than 80%).

salmon sashimi

Salmon flesh is generally orange to red, although there are some examples of white-fleshed wild salmon. The natural colour of salmon results from carotenoid pigments, largely astaxanthin but also canthaxanthin, in the flesh. Wild salmon get these carotenoids from eating krill and other tiny shellfish. Because consumers have shown a reluctance to purchase white-fleshed salmon, astaxanthin (E161j), and very minutely canthaxanthin (E161g), are added as artificial colorants to the feed of farmed salmon, because prepared diets do not naturally contain these pigments. In most cases, the astaxanthin is made chemically; alternatively it is extracted from shrimp flour. Another possibility is the use of dried red yeast, which provides the same pigment. However, synthetic mixtures are the least expensive option. Astaxanthin is a potent antioxidant that stimulates the development of healthy fish nervous systems and enhances the fish's fertility and growth rate. Research has revealed canthaxanthin may have negative effects on the human eye, accumulating in the retina at high levels of consumption. Today, the concentration of carotenoids (mainly canthaxanthin and astaxanthin) exceeds 8 mg/kg of flesh, and all fish producers try to reach a level that represents a value of 16 on the "Roche Color Card", a colour card used to show how pink the fish will appear at specific doses. This scale is specific for measuring the pink colour due to astaxanthin and is not for the orange hue obtained with canthaxanthin. The development of processing and storage operations, which can be detrimental on canthaxanthin flesh concentration, has led to an increased quantity of pigments added to the diet to compensate for the degrading effects of the processing. In wild fish, carotenoid levels of up to 25 mg are present, but levels of canthaxanthin are, in contrast, minor.

Canned salmon in the U.S. is usually wild Pacific catch, though some farmed salmon is available in canned form. Smoked salmon is another popular preparation method, and can either be hot or cold smoked. Lox can refer either to cold smoked salmon or to salmon cured in a brine solution (also called gravlax). Traditional canned salmon includes some skin (which is harmless) and bone (which adds calcium). Skinless and boneless canned salmon is also available.

Raw salmon flesh may contain Anisakis nematodes, marine parasites that cause Anisakiasis. Before the availability of refrigeration, Japanese did not consume raw salmon. Salmon and salmon roe have only recently come into use in making sashimi (raw fish) and sushi.

• 
  filet of an Atlantic salmon
• 
  poached salmon
• 
  smoked salmon
• 
  salad with ham and smoked salmon
• 
  salmon in marinade
• 
  grilled salmon
• 
  Salmon for sale
• 
  salmon roe (still in the skin)

Nutrition

159g (0.5 fillet) of raw salmon contains:

• Calories :200
• Fat(g): 7
• Carbohydrates(g): 0
• Fibers(g): 0
• Protein(g): 33
• Cholesterol(mg): 73

Ordinary types of cooked salmon contain 500–1500 mg DHA and 300–1000 mg EPA per 100 grams.

Salmon in mythology

The salmon is an important creature in several strands of Celtic mythology and poetry, which often associated them with wisdom and venerability. In Irish mythology, a creature called the Salmon of Wisdom (or the Salmon of Knowledge) plays key role in the tale known as The Boyhood Deeds of Fionn. The Salmon will grant powers of knowledge to whoever eats it, and has been sought by the poet Finn Eces for seven years. Finally Finn Eces catches the fish and gives it to his young pupil, Fionn mac Cumhaill, to prepare it for him. However, Fionn burns his thumb on the salmon's juices, and he instinctively puts it in his mouth. As such, he inadvertently gains the Salmon's wisdom. Elsewhere in Irish mythology, the salmon is also one of the incarnations of both Tuan mac Cairill and Fintan mac Bóchra.

Salmon also feature in Welsh mythology. In the prose tale Culhwch and Olwen, the Salmon of Llyn Llyw is the oldest animal in Britain, and the only creature who knows the location of Mabon ap Modron. After speaking to a string of other ancient animals who do not know his whereabouts, King Arthur's men Cai and Bedwyr are led to the Salmon of Llyn Llyw, who lets them ride its back to the walls of Mabon's prison in Gloucester.

In Norse mythology, after Loki tricked the blind god Höðr into killing his brother Baldr, Loki jumped into a river and transformed himself into a salmon in order to escape punishment from the other gods. When they held out a net to trap him he attempted to leap over it but was caught by Thor who grabbed him by the tail with his hand, and this is why the salmon's tail is tapered.

Salmon are central to Native American mythology on the Pacific coast, from the Haida to the Nootka.

Relief efforts

In the Pacific Northwest, one of the most notable relief efforts is the Puget Sound Partnership. The Puget Sound Partnership is currently working to implement policy change at the local level to alter the fate of salmon. Salmon recovery is guided by implementation of the Puget Sound Salmon Recovery Plan, adopted by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in January 2007. This recovery plan was developed by Shared Strategy, a grassroots collaborative effort to protect and restore salmon runs across Puget Sound. The Puget Sound Partnership has now rehabilitated over 800 acres of salmon habitat and it plans to continue to fight nearshore development and human impact affecting important salmon ecosystems. The Partnership's Action Agenda plans to instigate the Elwha Dam removal, begin restoration of the Nisqually Estuary and removal of derelict Fishing gear, and continue with the current salmon Recovery Plan. In order to ensure the future of Pacific Northwest salmon, the Partnership continues to encourage Stormwater & Low Impact Development, and advocates the "Puget Sound Starts Here" public education program.

Another notable local relief effort is the People for Puget Sound. People for Puget Sound is a citizen group founded by Kathy Fletcher in 1991 working to restore the health of our local land and waters with help from volunteers in the Puget Sound basin.

Sweden will stop salmon fishing in Baltic Sea in 2013 to protect it.

See also

• Alaska salmon fishery
• Aquaculture of salmon
• Atlantic salmon
• Fish diseases and parasites
• Pacific salmon
• Salmon run
• Salmon louse
• Sea louse
• Wild Salmon Center

Notes

Further reading

• Atlas of Pacific Salmon, Xanthippe Augerot and the State of the Salmon Consortium, University of California Press, 2005, hardcover, 152 pages, ISBN 0-520-24504-0
• Making Salmon: An Environmental History of the Northwest Fisheries Crisis, Joseph E. Taylor III, University of Washington Press, 1999, 488 pages, ISBN 0-295-98114-8
• Trout and Salmon of North America, Robert J. Behnke, Illustrated by Joseph R. Tomelleri, The Free Press, 2002, hardcover, 359 pages, ISBN 0-7432-2220-2
• Come back, salmon, By Molly Cone, Sierra Club Books, 48 pages, ISBN 0-87156-572-2 - A book for juveniles describes the restoration of 'Pigeon Creek'.
• The salmon: their fight for survival, By Anthony Netboy, 1973, Houghton Mifflin Co., 613 pages, ISBN 0-395-14013-7
• A River Lost, by Blaine Harden, 1996, WW Norton Co., 255 pages, ISBN 0-393-31690-4. (Historical view of the Columbia River system).
• River of Life, Channel of Death, by Keith C. Peterson, 1995, Confluence Press, 306 pages, ISBN 978-0-87071-496-2. (Fish and dams on the Lower Snake river.)
• Salmon, by Dr Peter Coates, 2006, ISBN 1-86189-295-0
• Lackey, Robert T (2000) "Restoring Wild Salmon to the Pacific Northwest: Chasing an Illusion?" In: Patricia Koss and Mike Katz (Eds) What we don't know about Pacific Northwest fish runs: An inquiry into decision-making under uncertainty, Portland State University, Portland, Oregon. Pages 91–143.
• NEWS January 31, 2007: U.S. Orders Modification of Klamath River - Dams Removal May Prove More Cost-Effective for allowing the passage of Salmon
• Salmon age and sex composition and mean lengths for the Yukon River area, 2004 / by Shawna Karpovich and Larry DuBois. Hosted by Alaska State Publications Program.
• Trading Tails: Linkages Between Russian Salmon Fisheries and East Asian Markets. Shelley Clarke. (November 2007). 120pp. ISBN 978-1-85850-230-4.
• The Salmons Tale one of the twelve Ionan Tales by Jim MacCool
• "Last Stand of the American Salmon," G. Bruce Knecht for Men's Journal
• Sea Lice and Salmon: Elevating the dialogue on the farmed-wild salmon story Watershed Watch Salmon Society, 2004.

External links

• Plea for the Wanderer, an NFB documentary on West Coast salmon
• Fish farms drive wild salmon populations toward extinction Biology News Net. December 13, 2007.
• Salmonid parasites University of St Andrews Marine Ecology Research Group.
• Watershed Watch Salmon Society A British Columbia advocacy group for wild salmon
• Wild Salmon in Trouble: The Link Between Farmed Salmon, Sea Lice and Wild Salmon - Watershed Watch Salmon Society. Animated short video based on peer-reviewed scientific research, with subject background article Watching out for Wild Salmon.
• Aquacultural Revolution: The scientific case for changing salmon farming - Watershed Watch Salmon Society. Short video documentary. Prominent scientists and First Nation representatives speak their minds about the salmon farming industry and the effects of sea lice infestations on wild salmon populations.
• Genetic Status of Atlantic Salmon in Maine: Interim Report (2002) Online book
• University of Washington Libraries Digital Collections – Salmon Collection A collection of documents describing salmon of the Pacific Northwest.
• Canned Salmon Recipes by Alaska Packers' Association, 1900 e-book with color illustrations, available from Internet Archive
• Epicurean.com Salmon Recipes Collected recipes using Salmon at epicurean.com
• Low Sodium Salmon Recipe Recipe to make smoked salmon mousse.
• Salmon-omics: Effect of Pacific Decadal Oscillation on Alaskan Chinook Harvests and Market Price Kevin Ho, Columbia University, 2005.
• Salmon Nation A movement to create a bioregional community, based on the historic spawning area of Pacific salmon (CA to AK).
• The Distribution of Pacific Salmon (Oncorhynchus spp.) in the Canadian Western Arctic, by S. A. Stephenson
• Sea Lice - Coastal Alliance for Aquaculture Reform. An overview of farmed- to wild-salmon interactive effects.
• Salmon Farming Problems - Coastal Alliance for Aquaculture Reform. An overview of environmental impacts of salmon farming.