The life of a salmon begins in the clean, oxygen-rich gravel of a freshwater stream. Female salmon create a nest, or redd, where they deposit their eggs. Once fertilized, the eggs remain tucked in the rocks through the winter. During this stage, the developing embryos are highly sensitive to changes in water temperature and silt levels.
"The salmon's journey is one of the most remarkable migrations in the natural world, symbolizing endurance and the cycle of life."
When the eggs hatch, the tiny fish are called alevin. They carry a yolk sac on their bellies that provides all the nutrition they need for several weeks. As they grow, they become fry, eventually developing vertical stripes for camouflage.
The scientific name for the Atlantic Salmon is Salmo salar. In some species, the fish will spend their entire lives in freshwater lakes rather than migrating to the sea.
According to the NOAA, adult salmon use their powerful sense of smell to return to the exact spot where they were born.
To reach these spawning grounds, they must leap over waterfalls. During this
exhausting trek, a salmon can jump up to 2 meters in the air.
This journey is often the
final act of their lives — a process described
by The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as semelparous.
1. The Incredible Journey - U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.
2. How do salmon know where their home is? - US Geological Survey.
3. The Salmon Life Cycle - National Park Service.