Interesting Facts about Salmon

(via wiki)

# All salmon die after they spawn, but some steelhead can spawn more than once. After spawning some steelhead return to the ocean and come back again to repeat the process.


# Salmon and steelhead migrate out in the open Pacific Ocean. Do you have a guess as to how far away they go? Some stay close to home while others may go as far away as Japan before turning around and coming back to the river where they were born.


# Salmon and steelhead are among only a few creatures on earth that are "anadromous" What does this mean? They live part of their life in freshwater and part of their life in saltwater. Because fish get oxygen out of the water they swim through, this means that their entire bodies have to make a drastic metabolic change not once but twice when going from fresh to saltwater then saltwater to freshwater.


# Salmon and steelhead that are born in freshwater spend time in rivers and streams as little fish eating bugs that allow them to grow larger. After spawning the salmon die and are eaten by bugs , closing a loop in the food chain.


# Chum salmon are also named Dog salmon because the Inuit and Eskimo people will catch them, let them freeze and then feed them to their dogs during the winter months when it is tough to find other sources of food. Male chum also develop large dog-like “fangs” which is another reason they are called dog salmon.


# Not long ago salmon and steelhead used to live in rivers up and down the west coast, going as far south as the Baja Peninsula. Today their range does not extend nearly as far south as it once did.


# Salmon find their home waters by sense of smell which is even more keen than a dog or bear. They also rely on ocean currents, tides and the gravitational pull of the moon to navigate their way through the ocean back to the stream or river where they were born.