View source for Salmon

{{about|a particular kind of fish|the food|Salmon as food|other uses}}
{{pp-semi-indef|small=yes}}
{{short description|Commercially important migratory fish}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2023}}
{{Paraphyletic group
|name = Salmon
|image = Salmo salar.jpg
|image_caption = [[Atlantic salmon]], ''Salmo salar''
|auto = yes
|parent = Salmoninae
|includes =
*{{extinct}}''[[Eosalmo driftwoodensis]]'' <small>[[Mark V. H. Wilson|Wilson]], 1977</small>
*''[[Oncorhynchus gorbuscha]]'' <small>([[Johann Julius Walbaum|Walbaum]], 1792)</small>
*''[[Oncorhynchus keta]]'' <small>([[Johann Julius Walbaum|Walbaum]], 1792)</small>
*''[[Oncorhynchus kisutch]]'' <small>([[Johann Julius Walbaum|Walbaum]], 1792)</small>
*''[[Oncorhynchus masou]]'' <small>([[J. Carson Brevoort|Brevoort]], 1856)</small>
*''[[Oncorhynchus nerka]]'' <small>([[Johann Julius Walbaum|Walbaum]], 1792)</small>
*''[[Oncorhynchus tshawytscha]]'' <small>([[Johann Julius Walbaum|Walbaum]], 1792)</small>
*''[[Salmo salar]]'' <small>[[Carl Linnaeus|Linnaeus]], 1758</small>
|excludes =
all other members of [[Salmoninae]]

}}

'''Salmon''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|s|æ|m|ən}}; {{plural form}}: salmon) are any of several [[list of commercially important fish species|commercially important]] [[species]] of [[euryhaline]] [[ray-finned fish]] from the [[genera]] ''[[Salmo]]'' and ''[[Oncorhynchus]]'' of the [[family (biology)|family]] [[Salmonidae]], native to [[tributary|tributaries]] of the [[North Atlantic]] (''Salmo'') and [[North Pacific]] (''Oncorhynchus'') basins.  ''Salmon'' is a colloquial or [[common name]] used for fish in this group, but is not a [[scientific name]]. Other closely related fish in the same family include [[trout]], [[Salvelinus|char]], [[Thymallus|grayling]], [[Freshwater whitefish|whitefish]], [[lenok]] and [[Hucho|taimen]], all [[coldwater fish]] of the [[subarctic]] and cooler [[temperate]] regions with some sporadic [[endorheic]] populations in [[Central Asia]].

Salmon are typically [[fish migration|anadromous]]: they hatch in the shallow [[gravel]] [[stream bed|bed]]s of [[freshwater]] [[headstream]]s and spend their [[juvenile fish|juvenile]] years in [[river]]s, [[lake]]s and freshwater [[wetland]]s, migrate to the [[ocean]] as [[adult]]s and live like [[sea fish]], then [[natal homing|return to their freshwater birthplace]] to [[reproduce]]. However, populations of several species are restricted to fresh waters (i.e. landlocked) throughout their lives. [[Folklore]] has it that the fish return to the exact [[stream]] where they themselves hatched to [[spawn (biology)|spawn]], and tracking studies have shown this to be mostly true. A portion of a returning [[salmon run]] may stray and spawn in different freshwater systems; the percent of straying depends on the species of salmon.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nwfsc.noaa.gov/publications/scipubs/techmemos/tm30/quinn.html |title=NOAA/NMFS/NWFSC-TM30: Homing, Straying, and Colonization |publisher=U.S. Dept Commerce/NOAA/NMFS/NWFSC/Publications |access-date=11 August 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181120031309/https://www.nwfsc.noaa.gov/publications/scipubs/techmemos/tm30/quinn.html |archive-date=20 November 2018 |url-status=live}}</ref> Homing behavior has been shown to depend on [[olfactory memory]].<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Scholz AT, Horrall RM, Cooper JC, Hasler AD |title=Imprinting to chemical cues: The basis for home stream selection in salmon |journal=Science |volume=192 |issue=4245 |pages=1247–9 |pmid=1273590 |year=1976 |doi=10.1126/science.1273590 |bibcode=1976Sci...192.1247S |s2cid=11248713}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author=Ueda H |title=Physiological mechanism of homing migration in Pacific salmon from behavioral to molecular biological approaches |journal=General and Comparative Endocrinology |volume=170 |issue=2 |pages=222–32 |pmid=20144612 |year=2011 |doi=10.1016/j.ygcen.2010.02.003 |hdl=2115/44787 |s2cid=205779299 |url=https://eprints.lib.hokudai.ac.jp/dspace/bitstream/2115/44787/1/GCE_170.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/https://eprints.lib.hokudai.ac.jp/dspace/bitstream/2115/44787/1/GCE_170.pdf |archive-date=9 October 2022 |url-status=live |hdl-access=free}}</ref>

Salmon are important [[food fish]] and are intensively [[salmon in aquaculture|farmed]] in many parts of the world,<ref>{{cite book |editor1-last=Lackey |editor1-first=Robert |editor2-last=Lach |editor2-first=Denise |editor3-last=Duncan |editor3-first=Sally |title=Salmon 2100: The Future of Wild Pacific Salmon |date=2006 |publisher=American Fisheries Society |location=Bethesda, MD |isbn=1-888569-78-6 |page=629}}</ref> with [[Norway]] being the world's largest producer of farmed salmon, followed by [[Chile]].<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.istoedinheiro.com.br/algas-nocivas-matam-mais-de-42-mil-toneladas-de-salmao-no-chile/ |title=Algas nocivas matam mais de 4,2 mil toneladas de salmão no Chile |access-date=4 September 2022}}</ref> They are also highly prized [[game fish]] for [[recreational fishing]], by both freshwater and saltwater [[angling|angler]]s. Many species of salmon have since been [[introduced species|introduced]] and [[naturalisation (biology)|naturalized]] into non-native environments such as the [[Great Lakes]] of [[North America]], [[Patagonia]] in [[South America]] and [[South Island]] of [[New Zealand]].<ref>McDowall, R. M. (1994). The origins of New Zealand's chinook salmon, Oncorhynchus tshawytscha. Marine Fisheries Review, 1 January 1994.</ref>

==Name and etymology==
The Modern English term ''salmon'' is derived from {{langx|enm|samoun}}, {{lang|enm|samon}} and {{lang|enm|saumon}}, which in turn are from [[Anglo-Norman language|Anglo-Norman]]: ''saumon'', from {{langx|fro|saumon}}, and from {{langx|la|salmō}} (which in turn might have originated from ''salire'', meaning "to leap".<ref>{{cite dictionary |title=Salmon (n) |url=http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=salmon |dictionary=Online Etymology Dictionary |access-date=25 April 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190402194009/https://www.etymonline.com/word/salmon |archive-date=2 April 2019 |url-status=live}}</ref>). The unpronounced "l" absent from Middle English was later added as a [[Latinism|Latinisation]] to make the word closer to its Latin root. The term ''salmon'' has mostly displaced its now dialectal synonym ''lax'', in turn from {{langx|enm|lax}}, from {{langx|ang|leax}}, from {{langx|gem-x-proto|lahsaz}} from [[Proto-Indo-European]]: ''*lakso-''.<ref name="salmon">{{cite web |title=salmon |url=https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/salmon |website=Wiktionary |access-date=1 January 2023 |language=en |date=31 December 2022}}</ref><ref name="lax">{{cite web |title=lax |url=https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/lax#English |website=Wiktionary |access-date=1 January 2023 |language=en |date=12 December 2022}}</ref>

== Species ==
The seven commercially important species of salmon occur in two genera of the [[subfamily]] [[Salmoninae]]. The genus ''[[Salmo]]'' contains the [[Atlantic salmon]], found in both sides of the [[North Atlantic]], as well as more than 40 other species commonly named as [[trout]]. The genus ''[[Oncorhynchus]]'' contains 12 recognised species which occur naturally only in the North Pacific, six of which are known as [[Pacific salmon]] while the remainder are considered trout. Outside their native habitats, [[Chinook salmon]] have been successfully introduced in [[New Zealand]] and [[Patagonia]], while [[coho salmon|coho]], [[sockeye salmon|sockeye]] and Atlantic salmon have been established in Patagonia, as well.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://globalflyfisher.com/fishbetter/patagonian-salmonids/ |title=Patagonian salmonids-This is the history and present state of salmonid introduction in Patagonia |date=25 August 2011 |author=Heiko Schneider |publisher=Global Fly Fisher |access-date=25 April 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140426235535/http://globalflyfisher.com/fishbetter/patagonian-salmonids/ |archive-date=26 April 2014 }}</ref>

{| class="wikitable collapsible"
|-
! colspan="13"| Atlantic and Pacific salmon
|-
! Genus
! Image
! Common name
! Scientific name
! Maximum<br/>length
! Common<br/>length
! Maximum<br/>weight
! Maximum<br/>age
! [[Trophic level|Trophic<br/>level]]
! [[FishBase|Fish<br/>Base]]
! [[FAO]]
! [[ITIS]]
! [[IUCN|IUCN status]]
|-
! style="text-align:center;"| ''[[Salmo]]''<br /><small>(Atlantic salmon)</small>
| <span style="{{MirrorH}}">[[File:Salmo salar.png|120px]]</span>
| [[Atlantic salmon]]
| ''Salmo salar'' <small>Linnaeus, 1758</small>
| style="text-align:right;"| {{height|cm=150|precision=0}}
| style="text-align:right;"| {{height|cm=120|precision=0}}
| style="text-align:right;"| {{convert|46.8|kg|lb}}
| style="text-align:right;"| 13 years
| style="text-align:center;"| 4.4
| style="text-align:center;"| <ref>{{FishBase | genus = Salmo | species = salar | month = April | year = 2012}}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"| <ref name=FAOSalmo_salar>{{cite web | title = Species Fact Sheet: ''Salmo salar'', Linnaeus, 1758 | url = http://www.fao.org/fishery/species/2929/en | publisher = [[FAO]] | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190402154054/http://www.fao.org/fishery/species/2929/en | archive-date = 2 April 2019 | url-status = live}}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"| <ref>{{ITIS |id=161996 |taxon=Salmo salar}}</ref>
|  [[File:NT IUCN 3 1.svg|NT IUCN 3 1.svg]]<small>Near threatened</small><ref>{{cite iucn |author=World Conservation Monitoring Centre |date=1996 |title=''Salmo salar'' |volume=1996 |article-number=e.T19855A9026693 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.1996.RLTS.T19855A9026693.en |access-date=12 November 2021}}</ref>
|-
! rowspan="8" style="text-align:center;"| ''[[Oncorhynchus]]''<br /><small>(Pacific salmon)</small>
| [[File:Lake Washington Ship Canal Fish Ladder pamphlet - ocean phase Chinook.jpg|120px]]<br />[[File:Lake Washington Ship Canal Fish Ladder pamphlet - male freshwater phase Chinook.jpg|120px]]
| [[Chinook salmon]]
| ''Oncorhynchus tshawytscha'' <small>(Walbaum, 1792)</small>
| style="text-align:right;"| {{height|cm=150|precision=0}}
| style="text-align:right;"| {{height|cm=70|precision=0}}
| style="text-align:right;"| {{convert|61.4|kg|lb}}
| style="text-align:right;"| 9 years
| style="text-align:center;"| 4.4
| style="text-align:center;"| <ref>{{FishBase | genus = Oncorhynchus | species = tshawytscha | month = April | year = 2012}}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"| <ref>{{cite web | title = Species Fact Sheet: ''Oncorhynchus tshawytscha'' (Walbaum, 1792) | url = http://www.fao.org/fishery/species/2933/en | publisher = [[FAO]] | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190403151355/http://www.fao.org/fishery/species/2933/en | archive-date = 3 April 2019 | url-status = live}}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"| <ref>{{ITIS |id=161980 |taxon=Oncorhynchus tshawytscha }}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"| <small>[[File:LC IUCN 3 1.svg|LC IUCN 3 1.svg]] Least concern</small><ref>{{Cite report |url=https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/202639/18231664 |title=Oncorhynchus tshawytscha: Hammerson, G.A. & Bogutskaya, N.: The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2024: e.T202639A18231664 |last=IUCN |date=2020-09-18 |publisher=International Union for Conservation of Nature |doi=10.2305/iucn.uk.2024-2.rlts.t202639a18231664.en |language=en}} Accessed on 25 May 2025.</ref>
|-
|  <span style="{{MirrorH}}">[[File:Oncorhynchus keta.jpeg|120px]]<br />[[File:Dog Salmon Breeding Male.jpg|120px]]</span>
| [[Chum salmon]]
| ''Oncorhynchus keta'' <small>(Walbaum, 1792)</small>
| style="text-align:right;"| {{height|cm=100|precision=0}}
| style="text-align:right;"| {{height|cm=58|precision=0}}
| style="text-align:right;"| {{convert|15.9|kg|lb}}
| style="text-align:right;"| 7 years
| style="text-align:center;"| 3.5
| style="text-align:center;"| <ref>{{FishBase | genus = Oncorhynchus | species = keta | month = April | year = 2012}}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"| <ref>{{cite web | title = Species Fact Sheet: ''Oncorhynchus keta'' (Walbaum, 1792) | url = http://www.fao.org/fishery/species/2931/en | publisher = [[FAO]] | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190403151354/http://www.fao.org/fishery/species/2931/en | archive-date = 3 April 2019 | url-status = live }}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"| <ref>{{ITIS |id=161976 |taxon=Oncorhynchus keta}}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"| <small>[[File:LC IUCN 3 1.svg|LC IUCN 3 1.svg]] Least concern</small><ref>{{Cite report |url=https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/202637/18236268 |title=Oncorhynchus keta: Hammerson, G.A. & Bogutskaya, N.: The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2024: e.T202637A18236268 |last=IUCN |date=2020-07-23 |publisher=International Union for Conservation of Nature |doi=10.2305/iucn.uk.2024-2.rlts.t202637a18236268.en |language=en}}  Accessed on 25 May 2025.</ref>
|-
| [[File:Lake Washington Ship Canal Fish Ladder pamphlet - ocean phase Coho.jpg|120px]]<br />[[File:Lake Washington Ship Canal Fish Ladder pamphlet - male freshwater phase Coho.jpg|120px]]
| [[Coho salmon]]
| ''Oncorhynchus kisutch'' <small>(Walbaum, 1792)</small>
| style="text-align:right;"| {{height|cm=108|precision=0}}
| style="text-align:right;"| {{height|cm=71|precision=0}}
| style="text-align:right;"| {{convert|15.2|kg|lb}}
| style="text-align:right;"| 5 years
| style="text-align:center;"| 4.2
| style="text-align:center;"| <ref>{{FishBase | genus = Oncorhynchus | species = kisutch | month = April | year = 2012}}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"| <ref>{{cite web | title = Species Fact Sheet: ''Oncorhynchus kisutch'' (Walbaum, 1792) | url = http://www.fao.org/fishery/species/2118/en | publisher = [[FAO]] | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190403211413/http://www.fao.org/fishery/species/2118/en | archive-date = 3 April 2019 | url-status = live }}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"| <ref>{{ITIS |id=161975 |taxon=Oncorhynchus kisutch }}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"| <small>[[File:LC IUCN 3 1.svg|LC IUCN 3 1.svg]] Least concern</small><ref>{{Cite report |url=https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/202638/18228780 |title=Oncorhynchus kisutch: Hammerson, G.A. & Bogutskaya, N.: The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2024: e.T202638A18228780 |last=IUCN |date=2020-07-27 |publisher=International Union for Conservation of Nature |doi=10.2305/iucn.uk.2024-2.rlts.t202638a18228780.en |language=en}} Accessed on 25 May 2025</ref>
|-
| <span style="{{MirrorH}}">[[File:Oncorhynchus masou.jpg|120px]]</span>
| [[Masu salmon]]
| ''Oncorhynchus masou'' <small>(Brevoort, 1856)</small>
| style="text-align:right;"| {{height|cm=79|precision=0}}
| style="text-align:right;"| {{height|cm=50|precision=0}}
| style="text-align:right;"| {{convert|10.0|kg|lb}}
| style="text-align:right;"| 3 years
| style="text-align:center;"| 3.6
| style="text-align:center;"| <ref>{{FishBase | genus = Oncorhynchus | species = masou | month = April | year = 2012}}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"|
| style="text-align:center;"| <ref>{{ITIS |id=161978 |taxon=Oncorhynchus masou }}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"| <small>Not assessed</small>
|-
| <span style="{{MirrorH}}">[[File:Humpback Salmon Adult Male.jpg|120px]]<br />[[File:Humpback Salmon Breeding Male.jpg|120px]]</span>
| [[Pink salmon]]
| ''Oncorhynchus gorbuscha'' <small>(Walbaum, 1792)</small>
| style="text-align:right;"| {{height|cm=76|precision=0}}
| style="text-align:right;"| {{height|cm=50|precision=0}}
| style="text-align:right;"| {{convert|6.8|kg|lb}}
| style="text-align:right;"| 3 years
| style="text-align:center;"| 4.2
| style="text-align:center;"| <ref>{{FishBase | genus = Oncorhynchus | species = gorbuscha | month = April | year = 2012}}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"| <ref>{{cite web | title = Species Fact Sheet: ''Oncorhynchus gorbuscha'' (Walbaum, 1792) | url = http://www.fao.org/fishery/species/2116/en | publisher = [[FAO]] | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190403211409/http://www.fao.org/fishery/species/2116/en | archive-date = 3 April 2019 | url-status = live}}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"| <ref>{{ITIS |id=161975 |taxon=Oncorhynchus gorbuscha }}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"| <small>[[File:LC IUCN 3 1.svg|LC IUCN 3 1.svg]] Least concern</small><ref>{{Cite report |url=https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/202636/18232679 |title=Oncorhynchus gorbuscha: Hammerson, G.A. & Bogutskaya, N.: The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2024: e.T202636A18232679 |last=IUCN |date=2020-07-23 |publisher=International Union for Conservation of Nature |doi=10.2305/iucn.uk.2024-2.rlts.t202636a18232679.en |language=en}}  Accessed on 25 May 2025</ref>
|-
| <span style="{{MirrorH}}">[[File:Lake Washington Ship Canal Fish Ladder pamphlet - ocean phase Sockeye.jpg|120px]]<br />[[File:Lake Washington Ship Canal Fish Ladder pamphlet - male freshwater phase Sockeye.jpg|120px]]</span>
| [[Sockeye salmon]]
| ''Oncorhynchus nerka'' <small>(Walbaum, 1792)</small>
| style="text-align:right;"| {{height|cm=84|precision=0}}
| style="text-align:right;"| {{height|cm=58|precision=0}}
| style="text-align:right;"| {{convert|7.7|kg|lb}}
| style="text-align:right;"| 8 years
| style="text-align:center;"| 3.7
| style="text-align:center;"| <ref>{{FishBase | genus = Oncorhynchus | species = nerka | month = April | year = 2012}}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"| <ref>{{cite web | title = Species Fact Sheet: ''Oncorhynchus nerka'' (Walbaum, 1792) | url = http://www.fao.org/fishery/species/2117/en | publisher = [[FAO]] | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190403211417/http://www.fao.org/fishery/species/2117/en | archive-date = 3 April 2019 | url-status = live}}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"| <ref>{{ITIS |id=161979 |taxon=Oncorhynchus nerka}}</ref>
| [[File:LC IUCN 3 1.svg|LC IUCN 3 1.svg]] <small>Least concern</small><ref>{{cite iucn |author=Rand, P.S. |date=2011 |title=''Oncorhynchus nerka'' |volume=2011 |article-number=e.T135301A4071001 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2011-2.RLTS.T135301A4071001.en |access-date=12 November 2021}}</ref>
|}
<small> &nbsp; &nbsp; <sup>†</sup> Both the ''Salmo'' and ''Oncorhynchus'' genera also contain a number of [[trout]] species informally referred to as salmon. Within ''Salmo'', the [[Adriatic salmon]] (''Salmo obtusirostris'') and [[Black Sea salmon]] (''Salmo labrax'') have both been named as salmon in [[English language|English]], although they fall outside the generally recognized seven salmon species. The [[masu salmon]] (''Oncorhynchus masou'') is actually considered a trout ("cherry trout") in [[Japan]], with ''masu'' actually being the [[Japanese language|Japanese]] word for trout. On the other hand, the [[steelhead]] and [[sea trout]], the anadromous forms of [[rainbow trout]] and [[brown trout]] respectively, are from the same genera as salmon and live identical migratory lives, but neither is termed "salmon" .</small>

{{common fish}}

The extinct ''[[Eosalmo driftwoodensis]]'', the oldest known [[Salmoninae]] fish in the [[fossil record]], helps scientists figure how the different species of salmon diverged from a [[common ancestor]]. The [[Eocene]] salmon's fossil from  [[British Columbia]] 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 the divergence occurred 10 to 20 million years ago during the [[Miocene]]. This independent evidence from [[DNA analysis]] and the fossil record indicate that salmon divergence occurred long before the [[Quaternary glaciation]] began the cycle of [[glacial]] advance and retreat.<ref>{{cite book |last=Montgomery |first=David |year=2004 |title=King of Fish |location=Cambridge, MA |publisher=Westview Press |isbn=0-8133-4299-6 |pages=27–28 }}</ref>

=== Non-salmon species of "salmon" ===
There are several other species of fish which are colloquially called "salmon" but are not true salmon. Of those listed below, the Danube salmon or ''[[huchen]]'' is a large freshwater [[salmonid]] closely related (from the same subfamily) to the seven species of salmon above, but others are fishes of unrelated [[order (biology)|order]]s, given the common name "salmon" simply due to similar shapes, behaviors and [[ecological niche|niche]]s occupied:

{| class="wikitable collapsible"
|-
! colspan="11"| Some other fishes called salmon
|-
! Common name
! Scientific name
! Order
! Maximum<br/>length
! Common<br/>length
! Maximum<br/>weight
! Maximum<br/>age
! [[Trophic level|Trophic<br/>level]]
! [[FishBase|Fish<br/>Base]]
! [[FAO]]
! [[ITIS]]
! [[IUCN|IUCN status]]
|-
| [[Australian salmon]]
| ''Arripis trutta'' <small>(Forster, 1801)</small>
| [[Perciformes]]
| style="text-align:right;"| {{height|cm=89|precision=0}}
| style="text-align:right;"| {{height|cm=47|precision=0}}
| style="text-align:right;"| {{convert|9.4|kg|lb}}
| style="text-align:right;"| 26 years
| style="text-align:center;"| 4.1
| style="text-align:center;"| <ref>{{FishBase | genus = Arripis | species = trutta | month = April | year = 2012}}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"|
| style="text-align:center;"| <ref>{{ITIS |id=168827 |taxon=Arripis trutta}}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"| <small>Not assessed</small>
|-
| [[Danube salmon]]
| ''Hucho hucho'' <small>(Linnaeus, 1758)</small>
| [[Salmoniformes]]
| style="text-align:right;"| {{height|cm=150|precision=0}}
| style="text-align:right;"| {{height|cm=70|precision=0}}
| style="text-align:right;"| {{convert|52|kg|lb}}
| style="text-align:right;"| 15 years
| style="text-align:center;"| 4.2
| style="text-align:center;"| <ref>{{FishBase | genus = Hucho | species = hucho | month = April | year = 2012}}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"|
| style="text-align:center;"| <ref>{{ITIS |id=162024 |taxon=Hucho hucho}}</ref>
| [[File:EN IUCN 3 1.svg|EN IUCN 3 1.svg]] <small>Endangered</small><ref name=IUCNthynnus>{{cite iucn |author=Freyhof, J. |author2=Kottelat, M. |date=2008 |title=''Hucho hucho'' |volume=2008 |article-number=e.T10264A3186143 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2008.RLTS.T10264A3186143.en |access-date=12 November 2021}}</ref>
|-
| [[Hawaiian salmon]]
| ''Elagatis bipinnulata'' <small>(Quoy & Gaimard, 1825)</small>
| [[Carangiformes]]
| style="text-align:right;"| {{height|cm=180|precision=0}}
| style="text-align:right;"| {{height|cm=90|precision=0}}
| style="text-align:right;"| {{convert|46.2|kg|lb}}
| style="text-align:right;"| 6 years
| style="text-align:center;"| 3.6
| style="text-align:center;"| <ref>{{FishBase | genus = Elagatis | species = bipinnulata | month = April | year = 2012}}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"| <ref>{{cite web | title = Species Fact Sheet: ''Elagatis bipinnulata'' (Quoy & Gaimard, 1825) | url = http://www.fao.org/fishery/species/3122/en | publisher = [[FAO]] | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20181125090431/http://www.fao.org/home/en/index.html | archive-date = 25 November 2018 | url-status = live}}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"| <ref>{{ITIS |id=168738 |taxon=Elagatis bipinnulata}}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"| <small>Not assessed</small>
|-
| [[Indian salmon]]
| ''Eleutheronema tetradactylum'' <small>(Shaw, 1804)</small>
| [[Perciformes]]
| style="text-align:right;"| {{height|cm=200|precision=0}}
| style="text-align:right;"| {{height|cm=50|precision=0}}
| style="text-align:right;"| {{convert|145|kg|lb}}
| style="text-align:right;"| years
| style="text-align:center;"| 4.4
| style="text-align:center;"| <ref>{{FishBase | genus = Eleutheronema | species = tetradactylum | month = April | year = 2012}}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"|
| style="text-align:center;"| <ref>{{ITIS |id=645505 |taxon=Eleutheronema tetradactylum}}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"| <small>Not assessed</small>
|}

==Distribution==
{{multiple image
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 | image1    = Salmon leaping at Willamette Falls.jpg
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 | caption1  = Pacific salmon leaping at [[Willamette Falls]], [[Oregon]]
 | image2    = Time series for global production of all salmon.png
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 | caption2  = Commercial production of salmon in million tonnes 1950–2010<ref name=FAOdata>Based on data sourced from the relevant [http://www.fao.org/fishery/species/search/en FAO Species Fact Sheets]</ref>
}}

*[[Atlantic salmon]] (''Salmo salar'') reproduce in northern rivers on both coasts of the Atlantic Ocean.
**Landlocked Atlantic salmon (''Salmo salar'' m. ''sebago'') is a [[potamodromous]] (migratory only between fresh waters) [[subspecies]]/[[morph (biology)|morph]] that live in a number of lakes in eastern North America and in Northern Europe, for instance in lakes [[Lake Sebago|Sebago]], [[Lake Onega|Onega]], [[Lake Ladoga|Ladoga]], [[Saimaa]], [[Vänern]] and [[Lake Winnipesaukee|Winnipesaukee]]. They are not a different species from the sea-run Atlantic salmon but have independently evolved a freshwater-only life cycle, which they maintain even when they could access the ocean.
*[[Chinook salmon]] (''Oncorhynchus tshawytscha'') are also known in the [[United States]] as [[king salmon]] or "blackmouth salmon", and as "spring salmon" in [[British Columbia]], [[Canada]]. Chinook salmon is the largest of all Pacific salmon, frequently exceeding {{cvt|6|ft}} and {{cvt|30|lb|order=flip}}.<ref>{{cite web | title = Chinook Salmon | publisher = Alaska Department of Fish and Game | url = http://www.adfg.state.ak.us/pubs/notebook/fish/chinook.php | access-date = 17 November 2006 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20061217130226/http://www.adfg.state.ak.us/pubs/notebook/fish/chinook.php | archive-date = 17 December 2006 }}</ref> The name ''tyee'' is also used in British Columbia to refer to Chinook salmon over 30 pounds and in the [[Columbia River]] watershed, especially large Chinooks 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,<ref name="dfo-mpo.gc.ca">{{cite web | url = http://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/Library/321160.pdf | title = The Distribution of Pacific Salmon (''Oncorhynchus'' spp.) in the Canadian Western Arctic | first = S. A. | last = Stephenson | access-date = 1 September 2013 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170712043429/http://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/Library/321160.pdf | archive-date = 12 July 2017 | url-status = live}}</ref> and as far south as the [[Central Coast (California)|Central Californian Coast]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Chinook Salmon |url=http://www.nwr.noaa.gov/ESA-Salmon-Listings/Salmon-Populations/Chinook/ |publisher=NOAA Fisheries |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120528081218/http://www.nwr.noaa.gov/ESA-Salmon-Listings/Salmon-Populations/Chinook/ |archive-date=28 May 2012 |date=6 April 2012}}</ref>
*[[Chum salmon]] (''Oncorhynchus keta'') is known as dog salmon or calico salmon in some parts of the US, and as ''keta'' in the [[Russian Far East]]. This species has the widest geographic range of the Pacific species:<ref>{{cite web | title = Chum Salmon | publisher = Alaska Department of Fish and Game | url = http://www.adfg.state.ak.us/pubs/notebook/fish/chum.php | access-date = 17 November 2006 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070405173410/http://www.adfg.state.ak.us/pubs/notebook/fish/chum.php | archive-date = 5 April 2007 }}</ref> in the eastern Pacific from north of the [[Mackenzie River]] in Canada to south of the [[Sacramento River]] in [[California]] and in the western Pacific from [[Lena River]] in [[Siberia]] to the island of [[Kyūshū]] in the [[Sea of Japan]].
*[[Coho salmon]] (''Oncorhynchus kisutch'') are also known in the US as [[silver salmon]]. This species is found throughout the coastal waters of [[Alaska]] and British Columbia and as far south as [[Central California]] ([[Monterey Bay]]).<ref>{{cite web |title=Coho Salmon |url=http://www.nwr.noaa.gov/ESA-Salmon-Listings/Salmon-Populations/Coho/ |publisher=NOAA Fisheries |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130202014228/http://www.nwr.noaa.gov/ESA-Salmon-Listings/Salmon-Populations/Coho/ |archive-date=2 February 2013 |date=28 June 2012}}</ref> It is also now known to occur, albeit infrequently, in the Mackenzie River.<ref name="dfo-mpo.gc.ca"/>
*[[Masu salmon]] (''Oncorhynchus masou''), also known as {{nihongo|"cherry trout"|桜鱒 サクラマス|sakura masu}} in [[Japan]], are found only in the western Pacific Ocean in Japan, Korea, and Russian Far East. A landlocked subspecies known as the Taiwanese salmon or Formosan salmon (''[[Oncorhynchus masou formosanus]]'') is found in central Taiwan's Chi Chia Wan Stream.<ref>{{cite news|title=Formosan salmon |newspaper=Taiwan Journal |url=http://taiwanjournal.nat.gov.tw/ct.asp?xItem=10710&CtNode=122 |access-date=13 December 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071013213219/http://taiwanjournal.nat.gov.tw/ct.asp?xItem=10710&CtNode=122 |archive-date=13 October 2007 }}</ref>
*[[Pink salmon]] (''Oncorhynchus gorbuscha''), known as humpback salmon or "humpies" in southeast and southwest Alaska, are found in the western Pacific from Lena River in Siberia to Korea, found throughout northern Pacific, and in the eastern Pacific from the Mackenzie River in Canada<ref name="dfo-mpo.gc.ca"/> to northern California, usually in shorter coastal streams. It is the smallest of the Pacific species, with an average weight of {{convert|3.5|to|4.0|lb|abbr=on|order=flip}}.<ref>{{cite web | title = Pink Salmon | publisher = Alaska Department of Fish and Game | url = http://www.adfg.state.ak.us/pubs/notebook/fish/pink.php | access-date = 17 November 2006 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070226222931/http://www.adfg.state.ak.us/pubs/notebook/fish/pink.php | archive-date = 26 February 2007 }}</ref>
*[[Sockeye salmon]] (''Oncorhynchus nerka'') is also known as [[red salmon]] in the US (especially Alaska).<ref>{{cite web | title = Sockeye Salmon | publisher = Alaska Department of Fish and Game | url = http://www.adfg.state.ak.us/pubs/notebook/fish/sockeye.php | access-date = 17 November 2006 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20061206232441/http://www.adfg.state.ak.us/pubs/notebook/fish/sockeye.php | archive-date = 6 December 2006 }}</ref> This lake-rearing species is found in the eastern Pacific from [[Bathurst Inlet]] in the [[Canadian Arctic]] to [[Klamath River]] in California, and in the western Pacific from the [[Anadyr River]] in Siberia to northern [[Hokkaido]] island in Japan. Although most adult Pacific salmon feed on small fish, [[shrimp]], and [[squid]], sockeye feed on [[plankton]] they filter through [[gill raker]]s.<ref name="USFWS" /> [[Kokanee salmon]] are a landlocked form of sockeye salmon. Their appeal to sport fishermen has led to them being introduced to many places in the United States and Canada.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-05-23 |title=Kokanee Salmon: Your Complete Guide to Fishing, Facts, Cooking, Conservation, and Gear - Everything About Kokanee Salmon |url=https://kokanee.fish/ |access-date=2025-05-24 |website=Kokanee Fishing |language=en-US}}</ref>
*Danube salmon, or [[huchen]] (''Hucho hucho''), are the largest permanent freshwater salmonid species.

==Life cycle==
{{see also|Salmon run|Juvenile salmon}}
[[File:Life cycle of Pacific salmon.jpg|thumb|Life cycle of Pacific salmon]]
{{multiple image
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 | image1    = Salmoneggskils.jpg
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 | caption1  = Eggs in different stages of development: In some, only a few cells grow on top of the [[yolk]], in the lower right, the [[blood vessel]]s surround the yolk, and in the upper left, the black eyes are visible, even the little lens.
 | image2    = Salmonlarvakils.jpg
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 | caption2  = Salmon fry hatching—the baby has grown around the remains of the yolk—visible are the [[artery|arteries]] spinning around the yolk and small oil 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 [[Fish egg|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 [[Fish scale|scales]] that are easily rubbed off. Only 10% of all salmon eggs are estimated to survive to this stage.<ref>{{cite web |title=A Salmon's Life: An Incredible Journey |url=http://www.blm.gov/education/00_resources/articles/Columbia_river_basin/posterback.html|publisher=U.S. Bureau of Land Management |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090225075127/http://www.blm.gov/education/00_resources/articles/Columbia_river_basin/posterback.html |archive-date=25 February 2009}}</ref>

The smolt body chemistry changes, allowing them to live in salt water. While a few species of salmon remain in fresh water throughout their life cycle, the majority are [[Fish migration|anadromous]] and migrate to the ocean for maturation: in these species, smolts spend a portion of their out-migration time in brackish water, where their body chemistry becomes accustomed to [[osmoregulation]] in the ocean. This body chemistry change is hormone-driven, causing physiological adjustments in the function of osmoregulatory organs such as the gills, which leads to large increases in their ability to secrete salt.<ref>{{Citation |last=McCormick |first=Stephen D. |title=5 - Smolt Physiology and Endocrinology |date=1 January 2012 |url=http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/B9780123969514000050 |work=Fish Physiology |volume=32 |pages=199–251 |editor-last=McCormick |editor-first=Stephen D. |series=Euryhaline Fishes |publisher=Academic Press |doi=10.1016/B978-0-12-396951-4.00005-0 |bibcode=2012eufi.book..199M |isbn=978-0-12-396951-4 |language=en |access-date=26 October 2020 |editor2-last=Farrell |editor2-first=Anthony P. |editor3-last=Brauner |editor3-first=Colin J.|url-access=subscription }}</ref> Hormones involved in increasing [[salinity tolerance]] include [[insulin-like growth factor I]], [[cortisol]], and [[thyroid hormones]],<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Björnsson |first1=Björn Th. |last2=Hansson |first2=Tiiu |date=February 1983 |title=Effects of hypophysectomy on the plasma ionic and osmotic balance in rainbow trout, Salmo gairdneri |journal=General and Comparative Endocrinology |volume=49 |issue=2 |pages=240–247 |doi=10.1016/0016-6480(83)90140-5 |pmid=6840518 |issn=0016-6480}}</ref> which permits the fish to endure the transition from a freshwater environment to 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 streams to spawn. 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. Grilse may be present at spawning, and go unnoticed by large males, releasing their own sperm on the eggs.<ref>{{cite book | editor-last1 = Vladić | editor-first1 = Tomislav | editor-last2 = Petersson | editor-first2 = Erik | year = 2015|page=150 | edition = 1st | title = Evolutionary Biology of the Atlantic Salmon | publisher = CRC Press | isbn = 978-1-4665-9848-5 }}</ref>

Prior to spawning, depending on the [[species]], salmon undergo changes. They may grow a hump, develop canine-like teeth, or develop a [[kype]] (a pronounced curvature of the jaws in male salmon). All 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 {{convert|900|mi|km|abbr=on|order=flip}} and climb nearly {{convert|7000|ft|m|abbr=on|order=flip}} 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]]), postspawning mortality is quite high (perhaps as high as 40 to 50%).

[[File:Redds.jpg|thumb|right|Redds on riverbed]]

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 {{convert|30|sqft|m2|abbr=on|order=flip}}.<ref>{{cite web|first=Susan |last=McGrath |title=Spawning Hope |publisher=Audubon Society |url=http://www.audubonmagazine.org/features0309/hope.html |access-date=17 November 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927063039/http://www.audubonmagazine.org/features0309/hope.html |archive-date=27 September 2007 }}</ref> The eggs usually range from orange to red. One or more males approach the female in her redd, depositing sperm, or milt, over the roe.<ref name="USFWS">{{cite web | title = Pacific Salmon, (Oncorhynchus spp.) | publisher = U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | url = http://www.fws.gov/species/species_accounts/bio_salm.html | access-date = 17 November 2006 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20181116213131/https://www.fws.gov/species/species_accounts/bio_salm.html | archive-date = 16 November 2018 | url-status = live}}</ref> 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 may make as many as seven redds before her supply of eggs is exhausted.<ref name="USFWS" />

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 [[estuary|estuaries]] provide important habitat for many salmon species. They feed on [[insects|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 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 [[corticosteroid]]s.

<gallery widths="220px" heights="155px">
File:SalmonoidsBergeau.jpg|Juvenile salmon, parr, grow up in the relatively protected natal river
File:Coho.jpg|The parr lose their camouflage bars and become smolt as they become ready for the transition to the ocean.
File:Lake Washington Ship Canal Fish Ladder pamphlet - ocean phase Sockeye.jpg|Male ocean-phase adult sockeye
File:Oncorhynchus nerka.flipped.jpg|Male spawning-phase adult sockeye
</gallery>
{{clear}}

== Diet ==
Salmon are mid-[[trophic level|level]] [[carnivore]]s whose diet change according to their life stage. Salmon [[fry (fish)|fry]] predominantly feed upon [[zooplankton]] until they reach [[Fingerling (fish)|fingerling]] sizes, when they start to consume more aquatic [[invertebrate]]s such as [[insect larvae]], micro[[crustacean]]s and [[worm]]s. As [[juvenile fish|juvenile]]s (parrs), they become more predatory and actively prey upon [[aquatic insect]]s, small crustaceans, [[tadpole]]s and small [[bait fish]]es. They are also known to breach the water to attack terrestrial insects such as [[grasshopper]]s and [[dragonflies]],<ref>{{Cite web |last=Glatz |first=Kyle |date=7 December 2021 |title=What Do Salmon Eat? 12 Foods in Their Diet |url=https://a-z-animals.com/blog/what-do-salmon-eat/ |access-date=15 July 2022 |website=AZ Animals |language=en-US}}</ref> as well as consuming [[fish egg]]s (even those of other salmon).

As adults, salmon behave like other mid-sized [[pelagic fish]], eating a variety of sea creatures including smaller [[forage fish]] such as [[lanternfish]], [[herring]]s, [[sand lance]]s, [[mackerel]]s and [[barracudina]]. They also eat [[krill]], [[squid]] and [[Polychaete|polychaete worms]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Fisheries |first=NOAA |date=3 May 2022 |title=Fun Facts About Amazing Atlantic Salmon {{!}} NOAA Fisheries |url=https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/outreach-and-education/fun-facts-about-amazing-atlantic-salmon |access-date=15 July 2022 |website=NOAA |language=en}}</ref>

==Ecology==
[[File:Cub with trophy.jpg|thumb|left|Bear cub with salmon]]
{{see also|Salmon run}}
In the [[Pacific Northwest]] and [[Alaska]], salmon are [[keystone species]].<ref name=Willson/> The migrations of salmon represent a massive retrograde [[nutrient]] transfer, rich in [[nitrogen]], [[sulfur]], [[carbon]] and [[phosphorus]], from the ocean to the inland [[freshwater ecosystem]]s. Predation by [[piscivorous]] land animals (such as [[osprey]]s, [[bear]]s and [[otter]]s) along the journey serve to transfer the nutrients from the water to land, and [[decomposition]] of salmon carcasses benefits the [[forest ecosystem]].

In the case of [[Pacific salmon]], most (if not all) of the salmon that survive to reach the [[headwater]] spawning grounds will [[semelparity|die after laying eggs]] and their dead bodies sink to cover the gravel beds, with the nutrients released from the [[biodegradation]] of their corpses providing a significant boost to these otherwise [[biomass (ecology)|biomass]]-poor shallow streams.

===Bears===
[[Grizzly bear]]s function as [[ecosystem engineer]]s, capturing salmon and carrying them into adjacent dry land to eat the fish. There they deposit nutrient-rich urine and feces and partially eaten carcasses. Bears preparing for [[hibernation]] tend to preferentially consume the more nutrient- and [[food energy|energy]]-rich [[salmon roe]]s and [[brain]] over the actual [[flesh]],<ref>{{cite journal|title=Consumption choice by bears feeding on salmon|url=https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s004420000590|last1=Gende |first1=S.M.|last2=Quinn|first2=T.P.|last3=Willson|first3=M.F.|date=2001-05-01|journal=[[Oecologia]]|volume=127|issue=3|pages=372–382|doi=10.1007/s004420000590|pmid=28547108 |bibcode=2001Oecol.127..372G |s2cid=41395058 |access-date=2023-09-14}}</ref> and are estimated to discard up to half the salmon they've harvested uneaten on the forest floor,<ref name=Reimchen2001/><ref name=Quinn2009/> in densities that can reach {{cvt|4000|kg}} per hectare,<ref name=Reimchen2002/> providing as much as 24% of the total nitrogen available to the [[riparian]] [[woodland]]s. The foliage of [[Picea glauca|spruce trees]] up to {{cvt|500|m}} from a stream where grizzlies fish salmon have been found to contain nitrogen originating from the fished salmon.<ref name=Helfield2006>{{Cite journal | last1 = Helfield | first1 = J. | name-list-style = amp | last2 = Naiman | first2 = R. | year = 2006 | title = Keystone Interactions: Salmon and Bear in Riparian Forests of Alaska | url = http://myweb.wwu.edu/~helfiej/publications_pdfs/Helfield_Naiman_2006.pdf | journal = Ecosystems | volume = 9 | issue = 2 | pages = 167–180 | doi = 10.1007/s10021-004-0063-5 | bibcode = 2006Ecosy...9..167H | s2cid = 28989920 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120426080102/http://myweb.wwu.edu/~helfiej/publications_pdfs/Helfield_Naiman_2006.pdf | archive-date = 26 April 2012 | url-status = live}}</ref>

===Beavers===
[[File:Sockeye salmon jumping over beaver dam Lake Aleknagik, AK Kristina Ramstad 1997.jpg|thumb|upright|Sockeye salmon jumping over beaver dam]]

[[Beaver]]s also function as ecosystem engineers; in the process of tree-cutting and [[beaver dam|dam]]ming, beavers alter the local ecosystems 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 [[fur trapping|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 run]]s 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:<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.nwcouncil.org/history/Extinction.asp | title = Extinction | publisher = Northwest Power and Conservation Council | access-date = 21 December 2007 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180101173222/https://www.nwcouncil.org/history/Extinction | archive-date = 1 January 2018 | url-status = live}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | title=Sockeye salmon (''Oncorhynchus nerka'') nursery lake fertilization: Review and summary of results |journal=Environmental Reviews|volume=12|issue=3|pages=133–162|doi=10.1139/a04-008|year=2004|last1=Hyatt|first1=K D|last2=McQueen|first2=D J|last3=Shortreed|first3=K S|last4=Rankin|first4=D P|bibcode=2004EnvRv..12..133H |s2cid=12930576| url=http://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/0cfb/39999bce91178a1091a58a6f8f9d090570cb.pdf | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200807012439/http://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/0cfb/39999bce91178a1091a58a6f8f9d090570cb.pdf | archive-date=7 August 2020 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url = http://rocky.ess.washington.edu/grg/publications/pdfs/Pollock.pdf | title = The Importance of Beaver Ponds to Coho Salmon Production in the Stillaguamish River Basin, Washington, USA | last1 = Pollock | first1 = M. M. | last2 = Pess | first2 = G. R. | last3 = Beechie | first3 = T. J. | access-date = 21 December 2007 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20060901185801/http://rocky.ess.washington.edu/grg/publications/pdfs/Pollock.pdf | archive-date = 1 September 2006 | url-status = live}}</ref>
*Slow the rate at which nutrients are flushed from the water system; nutrients provided by adult salmon dying throughout the fall and winter remain available in the spring to newly hatched juveniles
*Provide deeper [[salmon pool]]s where young salmon can avoid avian predators
*Increase productivity through [[algal]] [[photosynthesis]] and by enhancing the conversion efficiency of the [[cellulose]]-powered [[detritus cycle]]{{Clarify | date = May 2019 | reason = Not directly clear how it's related to Salmon; also, only one of the references seem to posit a question that the photosynthesis increase due to fertilizers related to Salmon may help juvenile salmons. }}
*Create slow-water 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

Beaver dams are able to nurture salmon juveniles in estuarine [[tidal marsh]]es where the salinity is less than 10&nbsp;ppm. Beavers build small dams of generally less than {{convert|2|ft|cm|sigfig=1|abbr=on|order=flip}} high in channels in the [[myrtle zone]]{{Clarify | date = May 2019 | reason = What's a '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 by larger fish.<ref>{{cite web | last1 = Hood | first1 = W Gregory  | title = AN OVERLOOKED ECOLOGICAL WEB | url = http://www.skagitwatershed.org/rpapers_overlooked.html | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080724000846/http://www.skagitwatershed.org/rpapers_overlooked.html | archive-date = 24 July 2008 }}</ref>

===Lampreys===
It has been discovered that rivers which have seen a decline or disappearance of anadromous [[lamprey]]s, loss of the lampreys also affects the salmon in a negative way. Like salmon, anadromous lampreys stop feeding and die after spawning, and their decomposing bodies release nutrients into the stream. Also, along with species like [[rainbow trout]] and [[Sacramento sucker]], lampreys clean the gravel in the rivers during spawning.<ref>{{cite web | date = 19 January 2010 | title = Yuba River Steelhead Redd Surveys (preliminary draft) | url = http://www.yubaaccordrmt.com/Study%20Protocols/Steelhead%20Redd%202010%20Study%20Plan%201-19-10%20(deepwater%20strikeout).pdf | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180429222315/http://www.yubaaccordrmt.com/Study%20Protocols/Steelhead%20Redd%202010%20Study%20Plan%201-19-10%20(deepwater%20strikeout).pdf | archive-date = 29 April 2018 | url-status = live | publisher =  Yuba River Management Team (RMT) Web Site, Yuba County Water Agency }}</ref> Their larvae, called ammocoetes, are [[filter feeder]]s which contribute to the health of the waters. They are also a food source for the young salmon, and being fattier and oilier, it is assumed predators prefer them over salmon offspring, taking off some of the predation pressure on smolts.<ref>{{cite news | title = Elder's devotion to ugly fish lives on after his tragic death | date = 20 August 2014 | url = http://america.aljazeera.com/articles/2014/8/20/save-the-lampreyelmercrow.html | work = Al Jazeera America | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20181116074100/http://america.aljazeera.com/articles/2014/8/20/save-the-lampreyelmercrow.html | archive-date = 16 November 2018 | url-status = live}}</ref>{{Unreliable source? | date = May 2019}} Adult lampreys are also the preferred prey of seals and sea lions, which can eat 30 lampreys to every salmon, allowing more adult salmon to enter the rivers to spawn without being eaten by the marine mammals.<ref>
{{cite news | title = Pacific Lamprey's Big Year | date = 18 June 2017 | url = http://kymkemp.com/2017/06/18/pacific-lampreys-big-year/ | work = Redheaded Blackbelt | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20181116062430/http://kymkemp.com/2017/06/18/pacific-lampreys-big-year/ | archive-date = 16 November 2018 | url-status = live}}</ref><ref>
{{cite web | year = 2014 | title = A Primeval Marvel | url = http://terra.oregonstate.edu/files/2014/01/Terra-all-pages-single.pdf | work = terra | publisher = Oregon State University | volume = 9 | number = 2 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180503042128/http://terra.oregonstate.edu/files/2014/01/Terra-all-pages-single.pdf | archive-date = 3 May 2018 | url-status = live}}</ref>

===Parasites===
{{main|Diseases and parasites in salmon}}
According to Canadian biologist Dorothy Kieser, the [[myxozoa]]n parasite ''[[Henneguya salminicola]]'' is commonly found in the flesh of salmonids. It has been recorded in the field samples of salmon returning to the [[Haida Gwaii 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.
[[File:Henneguya salminicola in flesh of coho salmon, BC, Canada.JPG|thumb|left|''[[Henneguya salminicola]]'', a [[myxozoa]]n parasite commonly found in the flesh of salmonids on the West Coast of Canada, in coho salmon]]

''Henneguya'' and other parasites in the [[myxosporean]] group have complex life cycles, 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.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://el.erdc.usace.army.mil/ansrp/myxobolus_cerebralis.pdf | title = Whirling Disease&nbsp;- ''Myxobolus cerebralis'' | access-date = 13 December 2007 | first1 = Danielle M. | last1 = Crosier | first2 = Daniel P. | last2 = Molloy | first3 = Jerri | last3 = Bartholomew | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080216100913/http://el.erdc.usace.army.mil/ansrp/myxobolus_cerebralis.pdf | archive-date = 16 February 2008 }}</ref> 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<ref>{{cite journal | url = http://publications.gc.ca/collections/collection_2013/mpo-dfo/Fs97-6-1405-eng.pdf | title = Investigation of the Distribution, Detection, and Biology of Henneguya salminicola (Protozoa, Myxozoa), a Parasite of the Flesh of Pacific Salmon | last1 = Boyce | first1 = N.P. | last2 = Kabata | first2 = Z. | last3 = Margolis | first3 = L. | year = 1985 | journal = Canadian Technical Report of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences | issue = 1450 | page = 55 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20141112112222/http://publications.gc.ca/collections/collection_2013/mpo-dfo/Fs97-6-1405-eng.pdf | archive-date = 12 November 2014 | url-status = live}}</ref> which states, "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, at the time the studies were conducted, stocks from the middle and upper reaches of large river systems in British Columbia such as [[Fraser River|Fraser]], [[Skeena River|Skeena]], [[Nass River|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."{{Citation needed | date = May 2019 | reason = This paragraph appears to be sentences that are copied from website to website with unclear origin; would improve reliability if primary source is specified.}}

[[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.<ref>
{{cite web | date = 2004 | title = Sea Lice and Salmon: Elevating the dialogue on the farmed-wild salmon story | url = http://www.farmedanddangerous.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/SeaLice_FullReport-April-2004.pdf | publisher = Watershed Watch Salmon Society | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120713061313/http://www.farmedanddangerous.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/SeaLice_FullReport-April-2004.pdf | archive-date = 13 July 2012 }}</ref><ref>
{{cite journal | last1 = Bravo | first1 = S. | year = 2003 | title = Sea lice in Chilean salmon farms | journal = Bull. Eur. Assoc. Fish Pathol. | volume = 23 | pages = 197–200 | url = https://www.researchgate.net/publication/279887581}}</ref> Sea lice are [[ectoparasite]]s 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.<ref>
{{cite journal | last1 = Morton | first1 = A. | first2 = R | last2 = Routledge | first3 = C | last3 = Peet | first4 = A | last4 = Ladwig | title = Sea lice (''Lepeophtheirus salmonis'') infection rates on juvenile pink (''Oncorhynchus gorbuscha'') and chum (''Oncorhynchus keta'') salmon in the nearshore marine environment of British Columbia, Canada | journal = Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences | volume = 61 | issue = 2 | pages = 147–157 | doi = 10.1139/f04-016 | year = 2004| bibcode = 2004CJFAS..61..147M }}</ref><ref>
{{cite thesis | last = Peet | first = C. R. | date = 2007 | title = Interactions between sea lice (''Lepeophtheirus salmonis'' and ''Caligus clemensii''), juvenile salmon (''Oncorhynchus keta'' and ''Oncorhynchus gorbuscha'') and salmon farms in British Columbia | type = MSc | publisher = University of Victoria | location = Victoria, British Columbia, Canada | url = http://www.raincoast.org/files/publications/papers/Peet-2007-Master-thesis.pdf | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20161026164902/http://www.raincoast.org/files/publications/papers/Peet-2007-Master-thesis.pdf | archive-date = 26 October 2016 | url-status = live}}</ref><ref>
{{cite journal | last1 = Krkošek | first1 = M | first2 = A | last2 = Gottesfeld | first3 = B | last3 = Proctor | first4 = D | last4 = Rolston | first5 = C | last5 = Carr-Harris | first6 = M.A. | last6 = Lewis | title = Effects of host migration, diversity and aquaculture on sea lice threats to Pacific salmon populations | journal = Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences | volume = 274 | issue = 1629 | pages = 3141–9 | pmid = 17939989 | pmc = 2293942 | year = 2007 | doi = 10.1098/rspb.2007.1122}}</ref>

Large numbers of highly populated, open-net salmon farms<!--*** footnote begins ***-->{{Efn-ua |
Open-net fish farms are large anchored floating net cages often located in bays and relatively sheltered areas.  Each farm may have over a million fish.<ref>{{cite web | last1 = Morton | first1 = Alexandra | title = SALMON CONFIDENTIAL: The ugly truth about Canada's open-net salmon farms | url = http://www.alexandramorton.ca/salmon-confidential-booklet/ | at = WHAT IS A FISH FARM? | access-date = 10 May 2019 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20151005203923/http://www.alexandramorton.ca/salmon-confidential-booklet/ | archive-date = 5 October 2015 | url-status = live }}</ref>
}}<!--*** footnote ends ***-->
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.<ref name="MortonRoutledge2008">{{cite journal | last1 = Morton | first1 = Alexandra | last2 = Routledge | first2 = Rick | last3 = Krkosek | first3 = Martin | title = Sea Louse Infestation in Wild Juvenile Salmon and Pacific Herring Associated with Fish Farms off the East-Central Coast of Vancouver Island, British Columbia | journal = North American Journal of Fisheries Management | volume = 28 | issue = 2 | year = 2008 | pages = 523–532 | issn = 0275-5947 | doi = 10.1577/M07-042.1 | bibcode = 2008NAJFM..28..523M | url = http://labs.eeb.utoronto.ca/krkosek/Publications_files/AM_NAJFM_2008.pdf | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130829060206/http://labs.eeb.utoronto.ca/krkosek/Publications_files/AM_NAJFM_2008.pdf | archive-date = 29 August 2013 }}</ref><ref name="KrkosekLewis2006">{{cite journal | last1 = Krkosek | first1 = M. | last2 = Lewis | first2 = M. A. | last3 = Morton | first3 = A. | last4 = Frazer | first4 = L. N. | last5 = Volpe | first5 = J. P. | title = Epizootics of wild fish induced by farm fish | journal = Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences | volume = 103 | issue = 42 | year = 2006 | pages = 15506–15510 | issn = 0027-8424 | doi = 10.1073/pnas.0603525103| pmid = 17021017 | pmc = 1591297 | bibcode = 2006PNAS..10315506K | doi-access = free }}</ref> 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%.<ref>{{cite journal | last = Krkošek | first = Martin | title = Declining Wild Salmon Populations in Relation to Parasites from Farm Salmon | journal = Science | volume = 318 | issue = 5857 | pages = 1772–5 | doi = 10.1126/science.1148744 | pmid = 18079401 | year = 2007 | bibcode = 2007Sci...318.1772K | s2cid = 86544687 }}</ref>

===Effect of pile driving===
The risk of injury caused by [[Pile driver#Environmental effects .28offshore pile driving.29|underwater pile driving]] has been studied by Dr. Halvorsen and her co-workers.<ref name="BrowmanHalvorsen2012">{{cite journal | last1 = Browman | first1 = Howard | last2 = Halvorsen | first2 = Michele B. | last3 = Casper | first3 = Brandon M. | last4 = Woodley | first4 = Christa M. | last5 = Carlson | first5 = Thomas J. | last6 = Popper | first6 = Arthur N. | title = Threshold for Onset of Injury in Chinook Salmon from Exposure to Impulsive Pile Driving Sounds | journal = PLOS ONE | volume = 7 | issue = 6 | year = 2012 | article-number = e38968 | issn = 1932-6203 | doi = 10.1371/journal.pone.0038968 | pmid = 22745695 | pmc = 3380060 | bibcode = 2012PLoSO...738968H | doi-access = free }}</ref> The study concluded that the fish are at risk of injury if the cumulative [[sound exposure level]] exceeds 210 [[decibel|dB]] relative to 1 μPa<sup>2</sup> s.{{Clarify | date = May 2019 | reason = The cumulative SEL number is most likely meaningless to a layperson; probably needs examples to what this number is equivalent.}}

==Wild fisheries==
[[File:Time series for global capture of true salmon.png|thumb|upright=1.8|left|[[Wild fisheries]] – commercial capture in tonnes of all true wild salmon species 1950–2010, as reported by the [[FAO]]<ref name=FAOdata />]]

===Commercial===
[[File:Seiner fishing for salmon Prince William Sound-2007.jpg|thumb|[[Seine fishing]] for salmon [[Prince William Sound]], [[Alaska]]]]
As can be seen from the production chart, the global capture reported by different countries to the [[FAO]] of commercial wild salmon has remained fairly steady since 1990 at about one million tonnes per year. This is in contrast to farmed salmon (below) which has increased in the same period from about 0.6 million tonnes to well over two million tonnes.<ref name=FAOdata />

Nearly all captured wild salmon are [[Pacific salmon]]. The capture of wild [[Atlantic salmon]] has always been relatively small, and has declined steadily since 1990. In 2011 only 2,500 tonnes were reported.<ref name=FAOSalmo_salar /> In contrast, about half of all farmed salmon are Atlantic salmon.

===Recreational===
[[File:In the net^ - geograph.org.uk - 98595.jpg|thumb|[[Angling|Angler]] and [[gillie]] landing a salmon in [[Scotland]]]]
[[Recreational fishing|Recreational]] salmon fishing can be a technically demanding kind of [[sport fishing]], not necessarily intuitive for beginning fishermen.<ref>{{cite conference | editor1-last = Bengtsson | editor1-first = Bo | editor2-first = A-L | editor2-last = Toivonen | editor3-last = Tuunainen | editor3-first = P | last1 = Weissglas | first1 = G | last2 = Appelblad | first2 = H | year = 1997 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=4AZM7b70E6QC&pg=PA93 | title = Wild-spawning Baltic salmon – A natural resource redefined: From food to toys for "boys"? | conference = Socio-economics of recreational fishery: Hotel Royal Wasa, Vaasa, Finland | location = Copenhagen | publisher = Nordic Council of Ministers [Nordiska ministerrådet] | pages = 89–95 | isbn = 978-92-893-0120-6}}</ref> A conflict exists between [[commercial fishermen]] and recreational fishermen for the right to salmon [[fish stocks|stock resources]]. Commercial fishing in [[estuaries]] and [[coastal]] areas is often restricted so enough salmon can return to their natal rivers where they can spawn and be available for sport fishing. On parts of the North American West Coast salmon sport fishing has completely replaced inshore commercial salmon fishing.<ref name=Shaw1987>{{cite book | last1 = Shaw | first1 = Susan | first2 = James | last2 = Muir | year = 1987 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=xz5-tCzfka4C&pg=PA250 | title = Salmon: Economics and Marketing | publisher = Springer Netherlands | isbn = 978-0-7099-3344-1 | pages = 250 }}</ref> In most cases, the commercial value of a salmon sold as [[seafood]] can be several times less than the value attributed to the same fish caught by a sport fisherman. This is "a powerful economic argument for allocating stock resources preferentially to sport fishing".<ref name=Shaw1987 />
{{clear}}

==Farms==
{{More citations needed|1=section|date=April 2023}}

[[File:Time series for global aquaculture of true salmon.png|thumb|upright=1.8|left|Aquaculture production in tonnes of all true salmon species 1950–2010, as reported by the [[FAO]]<ref name=FAOdata />]]
[[File:Fish farming in Torskefjorden, Senja, Troms, Norway, 2014 August.jpg|thumb|Salmon farming [[sea cage]] in Torskefjorden, [[Senja]] Island, [[Troms]], [[Norway]]]]
{{Main|Aquaculture of salmon}}
Salmon [[aquaculture]] is a major contributor to the world production of farmed finfish, representing about US$10&nbsp;billion annually. Other commonly cultured fish species include [[tilapia]], [[catfish]], [[Barred sand bass|sea bass]], [[carp]] and [[bream]]. Salmon farming is significant in [[Chile]], [[Norway]], [[Scotland]], Canada and the [[Faroe Islands]]; it is the source for most salmon consumed in the United States and Europe. Atlantic salmon are also, in very small volumes, farmed in Russia and [[Tasmania]], Australia.

Salmon are [[carnivorous]], and need to be fed meals produced from catching other wild [[forage fish]] and other marine organisms. Salmon farming leads to a high demand for wild [[forage fish]]. As a predator, salmon require large nutritional intakes of [[protein]], and farmed salmon consume more fish than they generate as a final product. On a dry weight basis, 2–4&nbsp;kg of wild-caught fish are needed to produce one kilogram of salmon.<ref>{{cite web | first = Rosamond L. | last = Naylor | title = Nature's Subsidies to Shrimp and Salmon Farming | url = http://www.nicholas.duke.edu/solutions/documents/science1998.pdf | publisher = Science; 10/30/98, Vol. 282 Issue 5390, p883 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20090326171021/http://www.nicholas.duke.edu/solutions/documents/science1998.pdf | archive-date = 26 March 2009}}</ref> As the salmon farming industry expands, it requires more 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]].<ref name="Alliance">{{cite web | date = 2005 | title = It's all about salmon | url = http://www.seafoodchoices.com/resources/afishianado_pdfs/Salmon_Spring05.pdf | url-status = usurped | publisher = [[Seafood Choices Alliance]] | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150924095748/http://www.seafoodchoices.com/resources/afishianado_pdfs/Salmon_Spring05.pdf | archive-date = 24 September 2015 }}</ref> The industrial-scale extraction of wild forage fish for salmon farming affects the survivability of other wild predatory fish which rely on them for food. Research is ongoing into sustainable and plant-based salmon feeds.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Fisheries |first=NOAA |date=2019-12-30 |title=Feeds for Aquaculture {{!}} NOAA Fisheries |url=https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/insight/feeds-aquaculture |access-date=2023-04-14 |website=NOAA |language=en}}</ref>

Intensive salmon farming uses open-net cages, which have low production costs. It has the drawback of allowing disease and [[sea lice]] to spread to local wild salmon stocks.<ref>{{cite news | title = Fish farms drive wild salmon populations toward extinction | date = 13 December 2007 | url = http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2007-12/s-ffd120707.php | publisher = [[SeaWeb]] | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20181125114015/https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2007-12/s-ffd120707.php | archive-date = 25 November 2018 | url-status = live}}</ref>

[[File:Salmon newborn.jpg|thumb|right|Artificially incubated [[chum salmon]] [[juvenile fish|fries]]]]
Another form of salmon production, which is safer but less controllable, is to raise salmon in [[hatchery|hatcheries]] until they are old enough to become independent. They are released into rivers in an attempt to increase the salmon population. This system is referred to as [[ranching]]. It 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, a company is limited in benefiting financially from their investment.

Because of this, the ranching method has mainly been used by various public authorities and non-profit groups, such as the [[Cook Inlet Aquaculture Association]], as a way to increase salmon populations in situations where they have declined due to [[overharvest]]ing, construction of [[dam]]s and [[habitat destruction]] or [[habitat fragmentation|fragmentation]]. Negative consequences to this sort of population manipulation include genetic "dilution" of the wild stocks. 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 catch them.

An alternative method to hatcheries is to use spawning channels. These are [[canal|artificial stream]]s, 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 that destroy natural redds also clean the regular streams. Spawning channels preserve the natural selection of natural streams, as there is no benefit, as in hatcheries, to use prophylactic chemicals to control diseases.{{Citation needed | date = May 2019 }}

Farm-raised salmon are fed the carotenoids [[astaxanthin]] and [[canthaxanthin]] to match their flesh colour to wild salmon<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.seafoodmonitor.com/sample/salmon.html |title=Pigments in Salmon Aquaculture: How to Grow a Salmon-colored Salmon |access-date=26 August 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071013221146/http://seafoodmonitor.com/sample/salmon.html |archive-date=13 October 2007 }}</ref> to improve their marketability.<ref>{{cite news | last1 = Guilford | first1 = Gwynn | title = Here's why your farmed salmon has color added to it | url = http://qz.com/358811/heres-why-your-farmed-salmon-has-color-added-to-it/ | access-date = 12 March 2015 | work = [[Quartz (publication)]] | date = 12 March 2015 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150313094123/http://qz.com/358811/heres-why-your-farmed-salmon-has-color-added-to-it/ | archive-date = 13 March 2015 | url-status = live}}</ref> Wild salmon get these [[carotenoid]]s, primarily astaxanthin, from eating [[shellfish]] and [[krill]].

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, but producing soy beans has a high environmental cost for the producing region. The fish omega-3 fatty acid content would be reduced compared to fish-fed salmon.

Another possible alternative is a yeast-based coproduct of [[bioethanol]] production, [[protein]]aceous fermentation biomass. Substituting such products for engineered feed can result in equal (sometimes enhanced) growth in fish.<ref name="autogenerated56">{{cite web | date = November 2010 | title = The Future of Aquafeeds: DRAFT for public comment | url = http://aquaculture.noaa.gov/pdf/feeds/aquafeedsrept_nov2010.pdf | publisher = NOAA/USDA Alternative Feeds Initiative | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20111015043844/http://aquaculture.noaa.gov/pdf/feeds/aquafeedsrept_nov2010.pdf | archive-date = 15 October 2011 | page = 56}}</ref> 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]].<ref name="autogenerated56"/> 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.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20130214173631/http://www.nwr.noaa.gov/Salmon-Recovery-Planning/index.cfm Salmon Recovery Planning]. nwr.noaa.gov. p. 57.</ref>{{Failed verification | date = May 2019}}

==Management==
[[File:Becharof Wilderness Salmon.jpg|thumb|right|Spawning [[sockeye salmon]] in Becharof Creek, [[Becharof Wilderness]], [[Alaska]]]]
[[File:Pacific salmon size declines could result in negative consequences for ecosystems and people.webp|thumb|Significant declines in the size of many species of Pacific salmon over the past 30 years are negatively impacting salmon fecundity, nutrient transport, commercial fishery profits, and rural food security.<ref name="salmonsize2"/>]]
{{main|Environmental issues with salmon}}
{{see also|Salmon conservation|Aquaculture of salmon#Issues}}

Salmon [[population dynamics of fisheries|population levels]] are of concern in the Atlantic and in some parts of the Pacific.<ref name="Lackey - 1999">{{cite journal |last1=Lackey |first1=Robert |title=Salmon policy: science, society, restoration, and reality |journal=Environmental Science and Policy |date=1999 |volume=2 |issue=4–5 |pages=369–379 |doi=10.1016/S1462-9011(99)00034-9|bibcode=1999ESPol...2..369L }}</ref> 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 River|Snake]] and Columbia River systems in northwestern United States.

[[Alaska salmon fishery|Alaska fishery]] stocks are still abundant, and catches have been on the rise in recent decades, after the state initiated limitations in 1972.<ref>{{cite web|title=1878–2010, Historical Commercial Salmon Catches and Exvessel Values|url=https://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=commercialbyfisherysalmon.salmoncatch|publisher=[[Alaska Department of Fish and Game]]|access-date=6 August 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=Viechnicki|first=Joe|title=Pink salmon numbers record setting in early season|url=http://krbd.org/modules/local_news/index.php?op=sideBlock&syndicated=true&ID=1924|access-date=6 August 2011|newspaper=KRBD Public Radio in Ketchikan, Alaska|date=3 August 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120328132113/http://krbd.org/modules/local_news/index.php?op=sideBlock&syndicated=true&ID=1924|archive-date=28 March 2012}}</ref>{{Citation needed | date = May 2019 | reason = The references already given are inaccessible including the archived versions.}} Some of the most important Alaskan salmon sustainable [[wild fisheries]] are located near the [[Kenai River]], [[Copper River (Alaska)|Copper River]], and in [[Bristol Bay]]. [[Fish farming]] of Pacific salmon is outlawed in the United States [[Exclusive Economic Zone]],<ref>{{Cite book|last1=Hey|first1=Ellen|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=M5rl4DkWpqkC&q=Fish+farming+of+Pacific+salmon+is+outlawed+in+the+United+States+Exclusive+Economic+Zone&pg=RA6-PA12|title=The Regulation of Driftnet Fishing on the High Seas: Legal Issues|last2=Burke|first2=W. T.|last3=Pnzoni|first3=D.|date=1991|publisher=Food & Agriculture Org.|isbn=978-92-5-103009-7|language=en}}</ref> however, there is a substantial network of publicly funded [[hatchery|hatcheries]],<ref>[http://media.aprn.org/2008/ann-20080922.mp3 media.aprn.org] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130521114814/http://media.aprn.org/2008/ann-20080922.mp3 |date=21 May 2013 }}|low fish returns in Southeast this summer have been tough on the region's hatcheries</ref> and the State of Alaska's [[fisheries management]] system is viewed as a leader in the management of wild [[Fish stocks|fish stock]]s.

In Canada, returning [[Skeena River]] wild salmon support [[commercial fisheries|commercial]], [[Artisan fishing|subsistence]] and [[recreational fishing|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. Of 435 wild stocks of salmon and steelhead, only 187 of them were classified as healthy; 113 had an unknown status, one was extinct, 12 were in critical condition and 122 were experiencing depressed populations.<ref>{{cite book|doi=10.1007/978-1-4615-6375-4_11|isbn=978-1-4615-6375-4|chapter=Status of Wild Salmon and Steelhead Stocks in Washington State|pages=127–144|publisher=Springer|author=Johnson, Thom H.|author2=Lincoln, Rich|author3=Graves, Gary R.|author4=Gibbons, Robert G.|title=Pacific Salmon & Their Ecosystems |name-list-style=amp |editor=Stouder, Deanna J. |editor2=Bisson, Peter A. |editor3=Naiman, Robert J. |year=1997}}</ref>

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.<ref>{{cite web | title = Cost and Revenue Characteristics of the Salmon Fisheries in California and Oregon | author1 = Hackett, S. | author2 = D. Hansen | name-list-style = amp | url = http://www.dfg.ca.gov/marine/salmonfisheries.asp | access-date = 1 June 2009 | archive-date = 4 June 2009 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20090604043208/http://www.dfg.ca.gov/marine/salmonfisheries.asp }}</ref> Both Atlantic and Pacific salmon are popular [[sportfish]].

Salmon populations have been established in all the Great Lakes. Coho stocks were planted by the state of Michigan in the late 1960s to control the growing population of non-native [[alewife (fish)|alewife]]. 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 sport fishery.

Wild, self-sustaining Pacific salmon populations have been established in New Zealand, Chile, and Argentina.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Correa |first1=Cristian |last2=Moran |first2=Paul |title=Polyphyletic ancestry of expanding Patagonian Chinook salmon populations |journal=Scientific Reports |date=2017 |volume=14338 |issue=1 |page=14338 |doi=10.1038/s41598-017-14465-y|pmid=29084997 |pmc=5662728 |bibcode=2017NatSR...714338C |doi-access=free }}</ref> They are highly prized by sport fishers, but others worry about displacing native fish species.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Iriarte |first1=J. Agustin |last2=Lobos |first2=Gabriel A. |last3=Jaksic |first3=Fabian M. |title=Invasive vertebrate species in Chile and their control and monitoring by governmental agencies |journal=Revista Chilena de Historia Natural |date=2005 |volume=78 |issue=78 |pages=143–154}}</ref>  Also, and especially in Chile ([[Aquaculture in Chile]]), both Atlantic and Pacific salmon are used in net pen farming.

In 2020 researchers reported widespread declines in the sizes of four species of wild [[Pacific salmon]]: Chinook, chum, coho, and sockeye. These declines have been occurring for 30 years, and are thought to be associated with climate change and competition with growing numbers of pink and hatchery salmon.<ref name="salmonsize">{{cite news |title=Alaska's salmon are getting smaller, affecting people and ecosystems |url=https://phys.org/news/2020-08-alaska-salmon-smaller-affecting-people.html |access-date=6 September 2020 |work=phys.org |language=en}}</ref><ref name="salmonsize2">{{cite journal |last1=Oke |first1=K. B. |last2=Cunningham |first2=C. J. |last3=Westley |first3=P. a. H. |last4=Baskett |first4=M. L. |last5=Carlson |first5=S. M. |last6=Clark |first6=J. |last7=Hendry |first7=A. P. |last8=Karatayev |first8=V. A. |last9=Kendall |first9=N. W. |last10=Kibele |first10=J. |last11=Kindsvater |first11=H. K. |last12=Kobayashi |first12=K. M. |last13=Lewis |first13=B. |last14=Munch |first14=S. |last15=Reynolds |first15=J. D. |last16=Vick |first16=G. K. |last17=Palkovacs |first17=E. P. |title=Recent declines in salmon body size impact ecosystems and fisheries |journal=Nature Communications |date=19 August 2020 |volume=11 |issue=1 |page=4155 |doi=10.1038/s41467-020-17726-z |pmid=32814776 |pmc=7438488 |bibcode=2020NatCo..11.4155O |language=en |issn=2041-1723}} [[File:CC-BY icon.svg|50px]]  Text and images are available under a [https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/  Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License].</ref>

==As food==
{{main|Salmon as food}}
[[File:Salmon sashimi.jpg|thumb|Salmon [[sashimi]]]]
[[File:Salmon eggs at the Tsukiji Fish Market.jpg|thumb|Salmon eggs being sold at [[Tsukiji fish market]] in [[Tokyo]], [[Japan]]]]
Salmon is a popular [[food fish]]. Classified as an [[oily fish]],<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.food.gov.uk/news/newsarchive/2004/jun/oilyfishdefinition |title=What's an oily fish? |date=24 June 2004 |publisher=[[Food Standards Agency]] |archive-url=http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20101210005807/http://www.food.gov.uk/news/newsarchive/2004/jun/oilyfishdefinition |archive-date=10 December 2010 }}</ref> salmon is considered to be healthy due to the fish's high [[protein (nutrient)|protein]], high [[omega-3 fatty acid]]s, and high [[vitamin D]]<ref name=FactD>{{cite web|url=http://dietary-supplements.info.nih.gov/factsheets/vitamind.asp |title=Dietary Supplement Fact Sheet: Vitamin D |publisher=National Institutes of Health |access-date=13 December 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070716065832/http://dietary-supplements.info.nih.gov/factsheets/vitamind.asp |archive-date=16 July 2007 }}</ref> content. Salmon is also a source of [[cholesterol]], with a range of {{nowrap |23–214&nbsp;mg/100&nbsp;g}} depending on the species.<ref name="cholesterol">{{cite web|url=http://www.dietaryfiberfood.com/cholesterol-shrimp.php|title=Cholesterol: Cholesterol Content in Seafoods (Tuna, Salmon, Shrimp)|access-date=13 December 2007|archive-date=20 December 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061220045844/http://www.dietaryfiberfood.com/cholesterol-shrimp.php}}</ref> According to reports in the journal ''[[Science (journal)|Science]]'', farmed salmon may contain high levels of [[Polychlorinated dibenzodioxins|dioxins]].{{medical citation needed|date=September 2015}} PCB ([[polychlorinated biphenyl]]) levels may be up to eight times higher in farmed salmon than in wild salmon,<ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.1126/science.1091447 |pmid=14716013 |title=Global Assessment of Organic Contaminants in Farmed Salmon |journal=Science |volume=303 |issue=5655 |pages=226–9 |year=2004 |last1=Hites |first1=R. A. |last2=Foran |first2=J. A. |last3=Carpenter |first3=D. O. |last4=Hamilton |first4=M. C. |last5=Knuth |first5=B. A. |last6=Schwager |first6=S. J. |url=http://darc.cms.udel.edu/Bioissues/Sciencesalmonstudy.pdf |access-date=27 October 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170811231049/http://darc.cms.udel.edu/Bioissues/Sciencesalmonstudy.pdf |archive-date=11 August 2017 |bibcode=2004Sci...303..226H |citeseerx=10.1.1.319.8375 |s2cid=24058620 }}</ref> but still well below levels considered dangerous.<ref>{{cite news | url = http://bc.ctvnews.ca/farmed-vs-wild-salmon-which-is-better-1.485140 | title = Farmed vs. wild salmon – which is better? | publisher = CTV News | access-date = 28 April 2013 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20181108154525/https://bc.ctvnews.ca/farmed-vs-wild-salmon-which-is-better-1.485140 | archive-date = 8 November 2018 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|pmc=1257546 |doi=10.1289/ehp.7626|year=2005|last1=Foran|first1=J. A.|title=Risk-Based Consumption Advice for Farmed Atlantic and Wild Pacific Salmon Contaminated with Dioxins and Dioxin-like Compounds|journal=Environmental Health Perspectives|volume=113|issue=5|pages=552–556|last2=Carpenter|first2=D. O.|last3=Hamilton|first3=M. C.|last4=Knuth|first4=B. A.|last5=Schwager|first5=S. J.|pmid=15866762|bibcode=2005EnvHP.113..552F }}</ref> 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.<ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.1001/jama.296.15.1885 |pmid=17047219 |title=Fish Intake, Contaminants, and Human Health |journal=JAMA |volume=296 |issue=15 |pages=1885–99 |year=2006 |last1=Mozaffarian |first1=Dariush |last2=Rimm |first2=Eric B. |doi-access= }}</ref> Farmed salmon has a high omega-3 fatty acid content comparable to wild salmon.<ref>{{cite journal|title=Dose-Dependent Consumption of Farmed Atlantic Salmon (''Salmo salar'') Increases Plasma Phospholipid n-3 Fatty Acids Differentially|journal=Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics|volume=113|issue=2|pages=282–7|pmid=23351633|pmc=3572904|year=2013|last1=Raatz|first1=S. K.|last2=Rosenberger|first2=T. A.|last3=Johnson|first3=L. K.|last4=Wolters|first4=W. W.|last5=Burr|first5=G. S.|last6=Picklo Mj|first6=Sr|doi=10.1016/j.jand.2012.09.022}}</ref> The type of omega-3 present may not be a factor for other important health functions.{{Vague | date = May 2019 | reason = This sentence maybe too vague.}}

Salmon flesh is generally orange to red, although white-fleshed wild salmon with white-black skin colour occurs. The natural colour of salmon results from [[carotenoid]] pigments, largely [[astaxanthin]], but also [[canthaxanthin]], in the flesh.<ref name="ECHealthCommissionOpinion">{{cite web | title = Opinion of the Scientific Committee on Animal Nutrition on the use of canthaxanthin in feedingstuffs for salmon and trout, laying hens, and other poultry. | pages = 6–7 | publisher = European Commission—Health & Consumer Protection Directorate | url = http://ec.europa.eu/food/fs/sc/scan/out81_en.pdf | access-date = 13 November 2006 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20061116053337/http://ec.europa.eu/food/fs/sc/scan/out81_en.pdf | archive-date = 16 November 2006}}</ref> Wild salmon get these carotenoids from eating [[krill]] and other tiny [[shellfish]].

The vast majority of [[Atlantic salmon]] available in market around the world are farmed (almost 99%),<ref>{{cite web | first = Fen | last = Montaigne | title = Everybody Loves Atlantic Salmon: Here's the Catch... | publisher = [[National Geographic Society|National Geographic]] | url = http://magma.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/0307/feature5/?fs=www3.nationalgeographic.com | access-date = 17 November 2006 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070301231621/http://magma.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/0307/feature5/?fs=www3.nationalgeographic.com | archive-date = 1 March 2007 }}</ref> whereas the majority of [[Oncorhynchus|Pacific salmon]] are wild-caught (greater than 80%). 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-[[smoking (food)|smoked]]. [[Lox]] can refer to either cold-smoked salmon or 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]]'' [[nematode]]s, marine [[parasite]]s that cause [[anisakiasis]]. Before the availability of [[refrigeration]], the [[Japan]]ese did not consume raw salmon. Salmon and salmon [[roe]] have only recently come into use in making [[sashimi]] (raw fish) and [[sushi]].<ref>{{cite news | first = Jess | last = Jiang |date = 18 September 2015 | title = How The Desperate Norwegian Salmon Industry Created A Sushi Staple | publisher = National Public Radio | url = https://www.npr.org/2015/09/18/441530790/how-the-desperate-norwegian-salmon-industry-created-a-sushi-staple | access-date = 14 January 2017 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190424211018/https://www.npr.org/2015/09/18/441530790/how-the-desperate-norwegian-salmon-industry-created-a-sushi-staple | archive-date = 24 April 2019 | url-status = live}}</ref>

To the [[Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast]], salmon is considered a vital part of the diet. Specifically, the indigenous peoples of [[Haida Gwaii]], located near former [[Queen Charlotte Island]] in [[British Columbia]], rely on salmon as one of their main sources of food, although many other bands have fished Pacific waters for centuries.<ref name="haidanation1">{{cite web | date = September 2007 | title = Haida Gwaii Strategic Land Use Agreement | url = http://www.haidanation.ca/Pages/Agreements/pdfs/Haida%20Gwaii%20Strategic%20Land%20Use%20Agreement.pdf | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150402095356/http://www.haidanation.ca/Pages/Agreements/pdfs/Haida%20Gwaii%20Strategic%20Land%20Use%20Agreement.pdf | archive-date = 2 April 2015 | publisher = Council of the Haida Nation }}</ref> Salmon are not only ancient and unique, but it is important because it is expressed in culture, art forms, and ceremonial feasts. Annually, salmon spawn in Haida, feeding on everything on the way upstream and down.<ref name="haidanation1"/> Within the Haida nation, salmon is referred to as ''"tsiin"'',<ref name="haidanation1"/> and is prepared in several ways including smoking, baking, frying, and making soup.

Historically, there has always been enough salmon, as traditional [[subsistence fishing]] methods did not result in overfishing, and people only took what they needed.<ref name="fish.bc.ca">{{cite book | last1 = Garner | first1 = Kerri | last2 = Parfitt | first2 = Ben | date = April 2006 | title = First Nations, Salmon Fisheries and the Rising Importance of Conservation (Prepared for the Pacific Fisheries Resource Conservation Council) | url = http://www.fish.bc.ca/files/First%20Nations%20Salmon%20Fisheries.pdf | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150402091754/http://www.fish.bc.ca/files/First%20Nations%20Salmon%20Fisheries.pdf | archive-date = 2 April 2015 | publisher = Pacific Fisheries Resource Conservation Council | location = Vancouver, BC | isbn = 1-897110-28-6}}</ref> In 2003, a report on [[First Nations in Canada|First Nations]] participation in commercial fisheries, including salmon, commissioned by BC's [[Ministry of Agriculture and Food]] found that there were 595 First Nation-owned and operated commercial vessels in the province. Of those vessels, First Nations' members owned 564.<ref name="fish.bc.ca"/> However, employment within the industry has decreased overall by 50% in the last decade, with 8,142 registered commercial fishermen in 2003. This has affected employment for many fisherman, who rely on salmon as a source of income.{{Relevance inline | date = May 2019 | reason = This paragraph is mostly related to employment, not food.}}

[[American black bear|Black bear]]s also rely on salmon as food. The leftovers the bears leave behind are considered important nutrients for the [[forests of Canada|Canadian forest]], such as the soil, trees and plants. In this sense, the salmon feed the forest and in return receive clean water and gravel in which to hatch and grow, sheltered from extremes of temperature and water flow in times of high and low rainfall.<ref name="haidanation1"/> However, the condition of the salmon in Haida has been affected in recent decades. Due to logging and development, much of the salmon's habitat (i.e., [[Ain River (Haida Gwaii)|Ain River]]) has been destroyed, resulting in the fish being close to endangered.<ref name="haidanation1"/> For residents, this has resulted in limits on catches, which, in turn, has affected families' diets and cultural events such as feasts. Some of the salmon systems in danger include the Davidon, Naden, Mamim, and Mathers.<ref name="haidanation1"/>

== Fishing ==
=== History ===
{{see also|Salmon cannery}}
[[File:Wenceslas Hollar - Salmon fishing (State 1).jpg|thumb|right|[[Seine fishing]] for salmon – [[Wenzel Hollar]], 1607–1677]]
The salmon has long been at the heart of the culture and livelihood of coastal dwellers, which can be traced as far back as 5,000 years when archeologists discovered [[Nisqually people|Nisqually tribe]] remnants.<ref>{{cite book|title=Messages from Frank's Landing: A Story of Salmon, Treaties, and the Indian Way|url=https://archive.org/details/messagesfromfran0000wilk|url-access=registration|last=Wilkinson|first=Charles|date=2000|publisher=University of Washington Press|isbn=978-0-295-98011-9|oclc=44391504}}</ref> The original distribution of the genus ''Oncorhynchus'' covered the Pacific Rim coastline.<ref>{{cite book|title=Atlas of pacific salmon: the first map-based status assessment of salmon in the North Pacific|last=Nadel.|first=Foley, Dana|date=1 January 2005|publisher=California University Press |isbn=978-0-520-24504-4|oclc=470376738}}</ref> History shows salmon used tributaries, rivers and estuaries without regard to jurisdiction for 18–22 million years. Baseline data is near impossible to recreate based on the inconsistent historical data, but there has been massive depletion since the 1900s. The [[Pacific Northwest]] once sprawled with native inhabitants who ensured little degradation was caused by their actions to salmon habitats. As [[animist]]s, the indigenous people relied not only for salmon for food, but spiritual guidance. The role of the salmon spirit guided the people to respect ecological systems such as the rivers and tributaries the salmon used for spawning. Natives often used the entire fish and left little waste by turning the bladder into glue, and using bones for toys and skin for clothing and shoes. The original salmon ceremony, introduced by indigenous tribes on the Pacific coast, consisted of three major parts. First was the welcoming of the first catch, and then the cooking of it. Finally the bones were returned to the sea to induce hospitality so other salmon would give their lives to the people of that village.<ref>{{Cite journal |jstor = 40316132|title = The Fish God Gave Us: The First Salmon Ceremony Revived|journal = Arctic Anthropology|volume = 24|issue = 1|pages = 56–66|last1 = Amoss|first1 = Pamela T.|year = 1987}}</ref> 

Many tribes, such as the [[Yurok]], had a [[taboo]] against harvesting the first fish that swam upriver in summer, but once they confirmed that the [[salmon run]] had returned in abundance they would begin to catch them in plentiful.<ref>{{cite book |title=Salmon Without Rivers: A History of the Pacific Salmon Crisis|first=Jim|last=Lichatowich|date=1999|publisher=Island Press|isbn=978-1-55963-360-4|oclc=868995261}}</ref> The indigenous practices were guided by deep ecological wisdom, which was eradicated when Euro-American settlements began to be developed.<ref>{{cite book|title=Making Salmon: An Environmental History of the Northwest Fisheries Crisis|last=E. |first=Taylor, Joseph|date=2001|publisher=Univ of Washington Press|isbn=978-0-295-98114-7|oclc=228275619}}</ref> Salmon have a much grander history than what is presently shown today. The salmon that once dominated the Pacific Ocean are now just a fraction in population and size. The Pacific salmon population is now less than 1–3% of what it was when [[Lewis and Clark Expedition|Lewis and Clark arrived]] at the region.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.house.gov/mcdermott/issues_salmon.shtml|title=Endangered Salmon|last=Mcdermott|first=Jim|date=2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061115041250/http://www.house.gov/mcdermott/issues_salmon.shtml|archive-date=15 November 2006|url-status=bot: unknown}}</ref> In his 1908 [[State of the Union address]], U.S. President [[Theodore Roosevelt]] observed that the fisheries were in significant decline:<ref>{{cite web | title = Columbia River History: Commercial Fishing | publisher = Northwest Power and Conservation Council | url = http://www.nwcouncil.org/history/commercialfishing.asp | year = 2010 | access-date = 26 January 2012 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20101211190259/http://www.nwcouncil.org/history/CommercialFishing.asp | archive-date = 11 December 2010 | url-status = live }}</ref><ref>
{{cite web | url = http://teachingamericanhistory.org/library/index.asp?document=1319 | title = State of the Union Address Part II by Theodore Roosevelt | author = Roosevelt, Theodore | date = 8 December 1908 | access-date = 31 January 2012 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130130021707/http://teachingamericanhistory.org/library/index.asp?document=1319 | archive-date = 30 January 2013 }}</ref>

<blockquote>''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.''</blockquote>

On the [[Columbia River]], the [[Chief Joseph Dam]] completed in 1955 completely blocks salmon migration to the upper Columbia River system.

The [[Fraser River]] salmon population was affected by the 1914 slide caused by the [[Canadian Pacific Railway]] at [[Hells Gate (British Columbia)|Hells Gate]]. The 1917 catch was one quarter of the 1913 catch.<ref>{{cite book | last = Babcock | first = John P | year = 1920 | title = Fraser River Salmon Situation a Reclamation Project | url = https://archive.org/details/fraserriversalmo00babciala | location = Victoria, B.C | publisher = W. H. Cullin. | pages = [https://archive.org/details/fraserriversalmo00babciala/page/5 5] }}</ref>

The [[salmon argument|origin of the word for "salmon"]] was one of the arguments about the location of the origin of the [[Indo-European languages]].

=== Commercial fishing ===


=== Recreational fishing ===

==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 folklore, fishermen associated salmon with fairies and thought it was unlucky to refer to them by name.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Ní Fhloinn|first=Bairbre|title=Cold Iron Aspects of the occupational lore of Irish fishermen|publisher=University College Dublin|year=2018|isbn=978-0-9565628-7-6|pages=105–123}}</ref> In [[Irish mythology]], a creature called the [[Salmon of Knowledge]]<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.luminarium.org/mythology/ireland/salmonknowledge.htm | title = The Salmon of Knowledge. Celtic Mythology, Fairy Tale | publisher = Luminarium.org | date = 18 January 2007 | access-date = 1 June 2010 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20181116183933/http://www.luminarium.org/mythology/ireland/salmonknowledge.htm | archive-date = 16 November 2018 | url-status = live}}</ref> plays a key role in the tale ''[[The Boyhood Deeds of Fionn]]''. In the tale, the Salmon will grant powers of knowledge to whoever eats it, and is sought by 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. In so doing, he inadvertently gains the Salmon's wisdom. Elsewhere in Irish mythology, the salmon is also one of the incarnations of both [[Tuan mac Cairill]]<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.maryjones.us/ctexts/tuan.html | title = The Story of Tuan mac Cairill | publisher = Maryjones.us | access-date = 18 March 2010 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100327224754/http://www.maryjones.us/ctexts/tuan.html | archive-date = 27 March 2010 }}</ref> and [[Fintan mac Bóchra]].<ref>{{cite web | url = https://celt.ucc.ie//published/G109001/index.html | title = The Colloquy between Fintan and the Hawk of Achill | publisher = Ucc.ie | access-date = 18 March 2010 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20181231091226/https://celt.ucc.ie/published/G109001/index.html | archive-date = 31 December 2018 | url-status = live}}</ref>

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 [[Sir Kay|Cai]] and [[Bedivere|Bedwyr]] are led to the Salmon of Llyn Llyw, who lets them ride its back to the walls of Mabon's prison in [[Gloucester]].<ref>{{cite web | last1 = Parker | first1 = Will | title = Culhwch ac Olwen: A translation of the oldest Arthurian tale | url = http://www.culhwch.info/ | website = Culhwch ac Olwen | access-date = 17 January 2018 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20181116154509/http://www.culhwch.info/ | archive-date = 16 November 2018 | url-status = live}}</ref>

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 to escape punishment from the other [[Æsir|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.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/poe/poe10.htm | title = The Poetic Edda | translator = Henry Adams Bellows | access-date = 27 April 2011 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190506071029/http://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/poe/poe10.htm | archive-date = 6 May 2019 | url-status = live}}</ref>

Salmon are central spiritually and culturally to [[Native American mythology]] on the Pacific coast, from the [[Haida people|Haida]] and [[Coast Salish]] peoples, to the [[Nuu-chah-nulth people]]s in [[British Columbia]].<ref>{{cite web | title = Tribal Salmon Culture: Salmon Culture of the Pacific Northwest Tribes | url = http://www.critfc.org/salmon-culture/tribal-salmon-culture/ | publisher = Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190513060812/https://www.critfc.org/salmon-culture/tribal-salmon-culture/ | archive-date = 13 May 2019 | url-status = live}}</ref>

== Notes ==
{{notelist | group = upper-alpha}}

== References ==
{{Reflist|30em|refs=
<ref name=Quinn2009>{{Cite journal |last1=Quinn |first1=T. |last2=Carlson |first2=S. |last3=Gende |first3=S. |name-list-style=amp |last4=Rich |first4=H. |year=2009 |title=Transportation of Pacific Salmon Carcasses from Streams to Riparian Forests by Bears |journal=Canadian Journal of Zoology |url=http://nature.berkeley.edu/carlsonlab/papers/QuinnEtAl_2009_CJZ.pdf |volume=87 |issue=3 |pages=195–203 |doi=10.1139/Z09-004 |bibcode=2009CaJZ...87..195Q |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120616141524/http://nature.berkeley.edu/carlsonlab/papers/QuinnEtAl_2009_CJZ.pdf |archive-date=16 June 2012 }}</ref>

<ref name=Reimchen2001>{{cite journal | author = Reimchen, TE | year = 2001 | url = http://www.web.uvic.ca/~reimlab/reimchen_ecoforestry.pdf | title = Salmon nutrients, nitrogen isotopes and coastal forests | journal = Ecoforestry | volume = 16 | page = 13 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20030506215141/http://web.uvic.ca/~reimlab/reimchen_ecoforestry.pdf | archive-date = 6 May 2003 | url-status = live}}</ref>
<ref name=Reimchen2002>{{cite journal|vauthors=Reimchen TE, Mathewson DD, Hocking MD, Moran J  |year=2002|url=http://web.uvic.ca/~reimlab/n15clayoquot.pdf |title=Isotopic evidence for enrichment of salmon-derived nutrients in vegetation, soil, and insects in riparian zones in coastal British Columbia|journal=American Fisheries Society Symposium|volume=20|pages= 1–12 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20031012143505/http://web.uvic.ca/~reimlab/n15clayoquot.pdf | archive-date = 12 October 2003 | url-status = live }}</ref>

<ref name=Willson>{{cite journal|vauthors=Willson MF, Halupka KC|year=1995|url=http://nativefishsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/Willison-salmon-as-keystone-species-CB.pdf|title=Anadromous Fish as Keystone Species in Vertebrate Communities|journal=Conservation Biology|volume=9|issue=3|pages=489–497|doi=10.1046/j.1523-1739.1995.09030489.x|jstor=2386604|bibcode=1995ConBi...9..489W |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111128194020/http://nativefishsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/Willison-salmon-as-keystone-species-CB.pdf|archive-date=28 November 2011}}</ref>

}}

==Further reading==
{{refbegin|60em}}
* ''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) [https://web.archive.org/web/20011115111834/http://www.epa.gov/wed/pages/staff/lackey/pubs/illusion.htm "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.
* Mills D (2001) [https://books.google.com/books?id=kkRKJCofvXMC&pg=PA246&dq=herring|herrings+clupea&hl=en&sa=X&ei=kKGXT5P7IOuwiQf83ICHBg&ved=0CJYBEOgBMBA#v=onepage&q=herring|herrings%20clupea&f=false "Salmonids"] In: pp.&nbsp;252–261, Steele JH, Thorpe SA and Turekian KK (2010) ''Marine Biology: A Derivative of the Encyclopedia of Ocean Sciences'', Academic Press. {{ISBN|978-0-08-096480-5}}.
*[https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/30/AR2007013001757.html NEWS January 31, 2007: U.S. Orders Modification of Klamath River – Dams Removal May Prove More Cost-Effective for allowing the passage of Salmon]
*[http://library.state.ak.us/asp/edocs/2007/04/ocn131181333.pdf Salmon age and sex composition and mean lengths for the Yukon River area, 2004 / by Shawna Karpovich and Larry DuBois.] Hosted by [http://library.state.ak.us/ Alaska State Publications Program].
*{{Cite PSM|Studies in the Natural History of the Sacramento Salmon|volume=61|month-and-year=July 1902}}
*[http://www.traffic.org/fisheries-reports/traffic_pub_fisheries7.pdf 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
{{refend}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Salmon}}{{Wikiquote}}{{Wiktionary}}{{NIE Poster}}{{Cookbook}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20120511194227/http://www.mensjournal.com/salmon "Last Stand of the American Salmon"], G. Bruce Knecht for Men's Journal (archived 11 May 2012)
* [http://www.nfb.ca/film/Plea_for_the_Wanderer/ ''Plea for the Wanderer'', an NFB documentary on West Coast salmon] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101127220527/http://nfb.ca/film/Plea_for_the_Wanderer/ |date=27 November 2010 }}
* [https://www.facebook.com/arcticsalmon Arctic Salmon on Facebook] research project studying Pacific salmon in the Arctic and potential links to climate change
* [http://content.lib.washington.edu/salmonweb/index.html University of Washington Libraries Digital Collections&nbsp;– Salmon Collection] A collection of documents describing salmon of the Pacific Northwest.
* [http://www.salmonnation.com/ Salmon Nation] {{Webarchive|url=http://webarchive.loc.gov/all/20021125221311/http%3A//www.salmonnation.com/ |date=25 November 2002 }} A movement to create a bioregional community, based on the historic spawning area of Pacific salmon (CA to AK).
* [http://www.arcticsalmon.ca/ Arctic Salmon] – Pacific salmon distribution and abundance seems to be increasing in the Arctic. Links to a Canadian research project documenting changes in Pacific salmon and studying Pacific salmon ecology in the Arctic.

{{salmon|state=expanded}}
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[[Category:Salmon| ]]
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[[Category:Commercial fish]]
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