The First Nations of B.C. treated salmon as partners and had many stories about the different kinds of “Salmon People”. Ask a group of modern biologists just how big the salmon clan is, however, and you’ll get as many answers as there are Aboriginal stories. Part of the challenge is caused by the nature of the Pacific Coast of Canada itself. With nearly 30,000 kilometres of coastline, it’s truly unique and boasts a level of biodiversity unparalleled in other Canadian waters. This diversity includes seven species of the Pacific salmon genus (Oncorhynchus), five of which are most commonly identified as “salmon”: sockeye, coho, pink, chinook, chum.
The term salmon generally refers to those salmonids that go to the marine environment to feed and return to fresh water to spawn. Rainbow and cutthroat trout are also from the Oncorhynchus genus, but they can also go to the ocean to feed. Most notably, some rainbow trout that go to the ocean are referred to as “steelhead.” Although cutthroat trout are less likely to use the ocean, some cutthroat use coastal marine areas and are sometimes referred to as “coastal cutthroat”.
The Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada has listed four salmon stocks as endangered: Cultus Lake sockeye, Sakinaw Lake sockeye, Interior Fraser coho, and Okanagan chinook. Many more salmon stocks meet the criteria for endangered listing, but have not yet been assessed. The listed stocks can actually comprise a number of genetically distinct populations.
Atlantic Canada is home to its own distinct species of salmon. These fish (Atlantic salmon, Salmo salar) are deeply threatened and have been declared endangered in both Canadian and U.S. watersheds.
Species List
Salmon are distinguished by size, body shape (morphology), colour, range and life cycle:
Pink (Oncorhynchus gorbuscha) - Living only two years, pinks are the smallest of the Pacific salmon, weighing up to 12 pounds (five kg). When they spawn, the males get a humped back, leading to the nickname “humpies”. They are the most plentiful of the Pacific salmon species.
Sockeye (Oncorhynchus nerka) - Blue-tinged silver in colour, sockeye salmon live four to five years, weigh up to 15 pounds (6.8 kg) and are the slimmest and most streamlined of the five species. They are easily identified when in their red and green spawning colours. Sockeye salmon rely more on lake habitat than most salmon.
Coho (Oncorhynchus kisutch) - Bright silver in colour, Coho salmon live three years, weigh up to 30 pounds (12 kg) and are sought after by both commercial and sport fishers. Juvenile coho spend up to two winters in the river where they hatch before travelling to the ocean, and therefore require healthy river habitat for survival.
Chum (Oncorhynchus keta) – Silver with black specks, chum salmon live three to five years and weigh up to 33 pounds (15 kg). When spawning, these large fish have distinct stripes and large, sharp teeth. Those teeth lead to the nickname “dog salmon”. Chum spawn later in the year than other Pacific salmon and are known for being less athletic than some salmon – even a small waterfall will block their passage. They typically spawn in the lower reaches of rivers.
Chinook (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) - Lightly spotted on their blue-green back, chinook salmon live from three to seven years and weigh up to 127 pounds (57 kg). They are also known as springs, kings or tyee and are the most famous game salmon sought by sport fishers.
Steelhead (Oncorhynchus mykiss) – Blue-green with black, regularly spaced spots, steelhead have variable life spans and can spawn more than once. Steelhead are essentially ocean-run rainbow trout but are more slender, averaging eight pounds (3.6 kg) but capable of reaching 50 pounds (22.5 kg). Steelhead are famous for the fight they put up when caught, primarily in catch-and-release fisheries.
Atlantic (Salmo salar) – Silver with numerous black spots, Atlantic salmon have variable life spans and can spawn more than once. In the wild, they range from five to over 50 pounds (2.3 to over 23 kg). When spawning, both sexes take on an overall bronze-purple colouration. Atlantic salmon that spawn more than once (“kelts”) are so dark in colour after spawning that they are also called "black salmon". Most salmon farmed in British Columbia are Atlantic salmon.
salmon fisheries
