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Salmon is also called the Atlantic noble salmon. The name “salmon” was given to this fish by Pomors, and enterprising Norwegians promoted the brand of the same name in Europe.
Salmon fish: description
Salmon (Salmo salar) is of particular interest to fishers. The Atlantic salmon belongs to the ray-finned fish and represents the genus “salmon” and the family “salmon”. Scientists, as a result of conducting a biochemical analysis of American and European salmon, came to the conclusion that these are different subspecies and identified them, respectively, as “S. Salar americanus” and “S. salar salar”. In addition, there is such a thing as migratory salmon and lake (freshwater) salmon. The lake salmon was previously considered as a separate species, and in our time it was assigned to a special form – “Salmo salar morpha sebago”.
Dimensions and appearance
All representatives of salmon are distinguished by a relatively large mouth, while the upper jaw extends beyond the projection of the eyes. The older the individual, the stronger their teeth. Sexually mature males have a conspicuous hook at the tip of the lower jaw, which enters the depression of the upper jaw. The body of the fish is long and somewhat laterally compressed, while it is covered with small, silvery scales. They do not adhere to the body firmly and easily peel off. They have a rounded shape and uneven edges. On the lateral line, you can count up to 150 scales or a little less. The pelvic fins are formed from more than 6 rays. They are located in the center of the body, and the pectoral fins are located away from the midline.
It is important to know! The fact that this fish is a representative of the “salmon” family can be recognized by a small adipose fin, which is located behind the dorsal fin. The tail fin has a small notch.
The belly of salmon is white, the sides are silvery, and the back is blue or green with a sheen. Starting from the lateral line and closer to the back, many uneven black spots can be seen on the body. At the same time, there is no spotting below the lateral line.
Young Atlantic salmon are distinguished by a very specific coloration: on a dark background, you can see up to 12 spots located across the body. Before spawning, males drastically change their color and they have red or orange spots, against the background of a bronze hue, and the fins acquire more contrasting shades. It is during the spawning period that the lower jaw lengthens in males and a hook-shaped protrusion appears on it.
In the case of a sufficient food supply, individual individuals can grow up to one and a half meters in length and weigh almost 50 kg. At the same time, the size of lake salmon can be different in different rivers. In some rivers, they gain weight no more than 5 kg, and in others, about 9 kg.
In the basins of the White and Barents Seas, both large representatives of this family and smaller ones, weighing up to 2 kg and no more than 0,5 meters long, are found.
Lifestyle, behavior
According to experts, it is better to attribute salmon to anadromous species that are able to live in both fresh and salt water. In the salty waters of the seas and oceans, Atlantic salmon fatten up, preying on small fish and various crustaceans. During this period, there is an active growth of individuals, while the fish increases in size by 20 cm per year.
Young individuals are in the seas and oceans for almost 3 years, until they reach sexual maturity. At the same time, they prefer to be in the coastal zone, at depths of no more than 120 meters. Before spawning, individuals ready for spawning go to the mouths of the rivers, after which they rise to the upper reaches, overcoming every day up to 50 kilometers.
Interesting fact! Among the representatives of the “salmon” there are dwarf species that constantly live in rivers and never go to sea. The appearance of this species is associated with cold water and poor nutrition, which leads to inhibition of the process of fish maturation.
Specialists also distinguish between lacustrine and spring forms of Atlantic salmon, depending on the period of puberty. This is connected in turn with the spawning period: one form spawns in autumn and the other in spring. Lake salmon, which are smaller in size, inhabit the northern lakes, such as Onega and Ladoga. In the lakes, they actively feed, but for spawning they go to the rivers flowing into these lakes.
How long does a salmon live
As a rule, Atlantic salmon live no more than 6 years, but in the case of a combination of favorable factors, they can live 2 times longer, up to almost 12,5 years.
Range, habitats
Salmon is a fish that boasts a very extensive habitat that covers the north Atlantic and the western part of the Arctic Ocean. The American continent is characterized by salmon habitat, including the American coast from the Connecticut River, which is closer to the southern latitudes, and up to Greenland itself. Atlantic salmon spawn in many rivers in Europe, from Portugal and Spain to the Barents Sea basin. Lake forms of salmon are found in freshwater bodies of Sweden, Norway, Finland, etc.
Lake salmon inhabits fresh water reservoirs located in Karelia and on the Kola Peninsula. He meets:
- In the Kuito lakes (Lower, Middle and Upper).
- In Segozero and Vygozero.
- In Imandra and Kamenny.
- In Topozero and Pyaozero.
- In Lake Nyuk and Sandal.
- In Lovozero, Pyukozero and Kimasozero.
- In Ladoga and Onega lakes.
- Lake Janisjarvi.
At the same time, salmon is actively caught in the waters of the Baltic and White Seas, in the Pechora River, as well as within the coast of the city of Murmansk.
According to the IUCN, some species have been introduced into the waters of Australia, New Zealand, Argentina and Chile.
Salmon diet
Salmon fish is considered a classic predator, which provides itself with nutrients exclusively on the high seas. As a rule, the basis of the diet is not large fish, but also representatives of invertebrates. So, the diet of salmon includes:
- Sprat, herring and herring.
- Gerbil and smelt.
- Krill and echinoderms.
- Crabs and shrimp.
- Three-spined smelt (representative of fresh water).
Interesting fact! Salmon, which is grown in artificial conditions, is fed with shrimp. Because of this, the meat of the fish acquires an intense pink hue.
Atlantic salmon entering the rivers and heading for spawning stop feeding. Individuals that have not reached sexual maturity and have not yet gone to sea feed on zooplankton, larvae of various insects, caddisfly larvae, etc.
Reproduction and offspring
The spawning process begins in September and ends in December. For spawning, the fish chooses suitable places in the upper reaches of the rivers. Salmon heading for spawning overcomes all sorts of obstacles, as well as the strength of the current. At the same time, she overcomes rapids and small waterfalls, jumping almost 3 meters out of the water.
When salmon starts moving to the upper reaches of the rivers, it has enough strength and energy, but as it approaches spawning grounds, it loses almost all of its energy, but this energy is enough to dig a hole up to 3 meters long in the bottom and deposit caviar. After that, the male fertilizes it and the female can only throw the eggs with bottom soil.
Interesting to know! Depending on age, salmon females lay from 10 to 26 eggs, with an average diameter of almost 5 mm. Salmon can spawn up to 5 times in their lifetime.
In the process of reproduction, the fish have to starve, so they return to the sea skinny and injured, as well as with injured fins. Often, many individuals die from exhaustion, especially males. If the fish manages to get into the sea, then it quickly restores its strength and energy, and its color becomes a classic silvery.
As a rule, the water temperature in the upper reaches of the rivers does not exceed +6 degrees, which significantly slows down the development of eggs, so the fry appear only in the month of May. At the same time, fry are radically different from adults, therefore, at one time they were mistakenly attributed to a separate species. The locals called juvenile salmon “pestryanki”, because of the specific coloration. The body of the fry is distinguished by a dark shade, while it is decorated with transverse stripes and numerous spots of red or brown. Thanks to such a colorful coloring, juveniles manage to perfectly disguise themselves among stones and aquatic vegetation. In spawning grounds, juveniles can stay up to 5 years. Individuals enter the sea upon reaching a length of about 20 centimeters, while their variegated coloring is replaced by a silvery hue.
Young individuals that remain in the rivers turn into dwarf males, which, like large anadromous males, take part in the process of fertilizing eggs, often repelling even large males. Dwarf males play a very important role in procreation, since large males are often busy sorting things out and do not pay attention to smaller members of their family.
Natural enemies of salmon
Dwarf males can easily eat the laid eggs, and minnow, sculpin, whitefish, and perch feed on the emerging fry. In summer, the number of juveniles decreases due to the hunting of taimen. In addition, Atlantic salmon is included in the diet of other river predators, such as:
- Trout.
- Golec.
- Pike.
- Nalim and others.
Being in spawning grounds, salmon is attacked by otters, birds of prey, such as white-tailed eagles, large mergansers and others. Being already in the open ocean, salmon becomes an object of food for killer whales, beluga whales, as well as many pinnipeds.
Fishing value
Salmon has always been considered a valuable fish and can easily be turned into a rather tasty delicacy. Back in tsarist times, salmon was caught on the Kola Peninsula and delivered to other regions, having previously been salted and smoked. This fish was a common dish on the tables of various nobility, on the tables of monarchs and clergymen.
Nowadays, Atlantic salmon is no less popular, although it is not present on the tables of many citizens. The meat of this fish has a delicate taste, so the fish is of particular commercial interest. In addition to the fact that salmon is actively caught in natural reservoirs, it is grown in artificial conditions. On fish farms, fish grow much faster than in the natural environment and can gain up to 5 kg of weight per year.
Interesting fact! On the shelves of Russian stores there are salmon fish caught in the Far East and represent the genus “Oncorhynchus”, which includes such representatives as chum salmon, pink salmon, sockeye salmon and coho salmon.
The fact that domestic salmon cannot be found on the shelves of Russian stores can be explained by a number of reasons. Firstly, there is a temperature difference between Norway and the Barents Sea. The presence of the Gulf Stream off the coast of Norway raises the water temperature by a couple of degrees, which becomes fundamental for artificial fish breeding. In Russia, the fish does not have time to gain commercial weight, with no additional methods, as in Norway.
Population and species status
At the international level, experts believe that at the end of 2018, nothing threatens the sea population of Atlantic salmon. At the same time, lake salmon (Salmo Salar m. sebago) in Russia is listed in the Red Book under category 2, as a species that is declining in numbers. Moreover, there is a decrease in the number of freshwater salmon living in the Ladoga and Onega lakes, where until recently unprecedented catches were noted. In our time, this valuable fish has become much less in the Pechora River.
Important fact! As a rule, some negative factors associated with uncontrolled fishing, pollution of water bodies, violation of the natural regime of rivers, as well as poaching activities, which have become rampant in recent decades, lead to a decrease in the number of salmon.
In other words, it is urgent to take a number of protective measures to preserve the salmon population. Therefore, salmon is protected in the Kostomuksha Reserve, organized on the basis of Lake Kamennoe. At the same time, experts argue that it is necessary to take a number of comprehensive measures, such as breeding in artificial conditions, reclamation of natural spawning grounds, combating poaching and uncontrolled fishing, etc.
In conclusion
Nowadays, salmon comes mainly from the Faroe Islands, which are located in the north Atlantic, between Iceland and Scotland. As a rule, the documents indicate that this is an Atlantic salmon (Atlantic Salmon). At the same time, it depends on the sellers themselves what they can indicate on the price tag – salmon or salmon. We can safely say that the inscription salmon is most likely the tricks of marketers. Many people believe that some manufacturers color the fish, but this is only an assumption, since the color of the meat depends on what percentage of shrimp is in the fish feed.
Salmon is a source of protein, since 100 grams contains half of the daily human norm. In addition, salmon meat contains a sufficient amount of other useful substances, such as minerals, vitamins, Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, which positively affect the functions of human internal organs. At the same time, it should be remembered that raw, lightly salted salmon contains the most useful components. As a result of heat treatment, some of them are still lost, so the less it is subjected to heat treatment, the more useful it is. It is better to boil or bake in the oven. Fried fish is less healthy, and even harmful.
Interestingly, even in ancient times, when the rivers abounded with Atlantic salmon, it did not have the status of a delicacy, as the famous writer Walter Scott mentioned. The Scottish laborers who were hired necessarily stipulated one condition that they were not fed salmon so often. That’s it!
Atlantic Salmon – King of the River