Saltwater Fish Species
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Chinook Salmon
Chinook Salmon highly prized game fish are also known as king salmon. Chinook are the largest Pacific salmon and immensely hard-fighting, powerful fish. Like all salmon, they begin their lives in freshwater. Chinook salmon fry can migrate to sea when they are only three months old, but generally, they remain in the spawning rivers for one to three years before migrating to the oceans, where they feed and mature. These salmon can migrate huge distances at sea, then they return to the rivers they were born in, spawn once, and…
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Atlantic Salmon
The Atlantic salmon is a hugely important game fish and a highly prized catch, especially among fly anglers. These fish can grow to large sizes and are mighty swimmers, built for endurance and speed. Before Atlantic salmon spawn, they spend several years feeding in the cold ocean waters, but once the urge to spawn comes, they return to the rivers in which they were born. A proportion of adult Atlantic salmon die after spawning, but some survive and these return to the sea. Young salmon (smolts) migrate to the sea…
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Arctic Char
Arctic Char can reach a maximum length of about 1m (3¼ feet). Their backs are dark brown or olive, with lighter sides fading to a lighter-colored belly. Colors vary considerably during spawning, especially in male arctic char – the entire body can be gold or orange, and the lower feathers are often edged with white. The species is believed to spawn from August to October in alternate years. Arctic Char is a popular rustling in the lakes of Kodiak Island in Alaska. They also congregate in the large lagoons of…
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Dolly Varden
Dolly Varden is part of a family of four. They grow to about 1.3m (4¼ft) in length, and their lighter spots distinguish them from trout and salmon. Adult male Dolly Varden develop a distinctive bright red coloration with the lower body, and their wings are red-black with white edges. Over time, their lower jaw grows. Adult females are similar in color but less bright. Sea-going Dolly Vardens are more silvery, with many red and orange spots on their flanks, and greenish-brown dorsal fins. Dolly Varden spawns in streams during the…