Which species of salmon is the most numerous?
Pink salmon, whose species name is O.gorbuscha, are both the most abundant and the smallest of Pacific salmon. Spawning Pinks generally weigh from 1.5 to 3 kilograms and are always two years of age.
While in the Fraser, Pink salmon are the most plentiful in the odd years, on the north coast of B.C. and Alaska they are much more likely to return to rivers in the even years. But in some rivers in the North Pacific, Pinks can be found spawning in rivers every year.
What is the biggest Pacific salmon?
Chinook, also known as Tyee (meaning King), generally weigh between 30 and 40 lbs. They live the longest of Pacific salmon (up to eight years), and prefer larger river systems. They are strong swimmers and leapers, and are prized by sportfishers. Their size and splendour makes them wonderful catches, but it also contributes to their scarcity relative to other Pacific salmon.
What do Steelhead and Cutthroat species do that the other five species of Pacific salmon do not?
They can spawn more than once, which is one of the main reasons for the confusion as to whether they’re salmon or trout. Most true trout are repeat spawners. Coho, Chinook, Chum, Pink, and Sockeye are in fact genetic descendants of the Steelhead (the dominant progenitor of modern salmon species) and evolved after one of our more recent ice ages.
What are white-fleshed Chinook salmon?
In Canada we refer to this as white-flesh Chinook, not to be confused with the ‘spirit salmon’ or white Chinook, which is a rare occurrence where the salmon’s exterior and internal flesh are almost colourless, but not albino. The ‘spirit salmon’ result from a recessive gene similar to the spirit bear.
White-flesh Chinook salmon are a natural form of Chinook salmon and more common in some stocks than in others.
Salmon traits are inherited through their genes and colouration is one of those traits. Some traits are recessive and some dominant; however, colouration is a blended gene similar to height in humans. Human offspring are not exactly the height of one or the other of the DNA contributor, but rather a combination.
The colouration in salmon flesh is produced by carotenoids, a photosynthetic natural pigment produced only by phytoplankton, algae, plants, and a limited number of fungi and bacteria. It’s bio-accumulated up the food chain to produce the familiar pink, orange and red colours flesh colours in salmon.
White-fleshed Chinook salmon taste like salmon but look more like tuna.
Salmon aren’t alone in showing their carotenoids. Numerous species of birds (flamingos especially) crustaceans, fish and insects are also pigmented with carotenoids obtained from their diet. The distribution and storage of the colouration is determined by each animal’s genes. White flesh still has significant quantities of carotenoids even if we cannot see it with our naked eye.
Where can you find white-fleshed Chinook salmon? The Harrison River late run (fall), the Upper Pitt River summer run and the Chilliwack River fall run are all predominately white flesh. Many other systems also have white-flesh Chinook. Your best bet to find other runs of white-flesh Chinook is to ask locals.
What are Carotenoids?
This fat-soluble pigmentation molecule has many important roles to play in salmon, humans and other wildlife. Two important ones for salmon are during the development of secondary sex characteristics (in the egg) and sexual maturation of the adult fish (when they spawn).
In salmon eggs carotenoids offer important protection from UV rays and other harmful occurrences. When salmon spawn, carotenoids are redistributed from the flesh to the skin to produce spawning colours.
Salmon accumulate carotenoid from their diet and then deposit it in their muscle tissue. This accounts for 65 percent of a salmon’s body mass. In the muscle tissue carotenoids protects the salmon’s fatty acids and other sensitive cellular components from oxidative stress during their extremely taxing migration hundreds of kilometres to spawn in their natal streams.
Research showed the following average concentrations of carotenoids in wild salmon.
- Sockeye salmon range: 30-58 mg/kg, average: 40.4 mg/kg
- Coho salmon range: 9-28 mg/kg, average: 13.8 mg/kg
- Pink salmon range: 3-7 mg/kg, average: 5.4 mg/kg
- Chum salmon range: 1-8 mg/kg, average: 5.6 mg/kg
- Chinook salmon range: 1-22 mg/kg, average: 8.9 mg/kg (it has the lowest and therefore displays the white flesh we are familiar with)
So what’s similar to carotenoids? Beta-carotene found in carrots is the most familiar to us. Humans convert beta-carotene to vitamin A for use in the macula region of the eye to reduce UV light damage, the same as the salmon uses carotenoids to reduce UV light in the egg.
Where can you find white-fleshed Chinook salmon? The Harrison River late run (fall), the Upper Pitt River summer run and the Chilliwack River fall run are all predominately white flesh. Many other systems also have white-flesh Chinook. Your best bet to find other runs of white-flesh Chinook is to ask locals.
What is a salmon hatchery?
In B.C., we have 3 main types of hatcheries (or hybrids of the following):
Major facilities producing fish in areas where the Federal government (Department of Fisheries and Oceans) is the main steward, and in watersheds where the stocks or habitat has been compromised or degrader. These facilities generally produce commercially, recreationally and First Nations (FN) fishable abundance.
CEDP (Community Economic Development Program) facilities producing large enough numbers of fish in degraded watersheds. These facilites focus on support recreational and FN fisheries and are generally managed by the Federal government in partnership with FN or a local stewardship organization.
Public Involvement Hatcheries that are very small and work to conserve and rebuild degraded runs. These facilities are conservation based and salmon returns are not targeted for fishing. They are generally run by the Federal government in partnership with volunteer aquatic stewards such as Fish and Game protection associations, Streamkeepers and Enhancement Societies.
Chinook enhancement and conservation is very important as it is a species of fisheries management concern for its environmental (ecosystem), cultural, spiritual, economic, educational and social value. These fish matter to us all!
The numbers of juveniles released from hatcheries of all three types provide food for the entire food web. Hatchery salmon are eaten by everything from birds to whales.
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