Adult chum salmon weigh aproximately 3.5 kg and can grow to a length of 56cm – 66cm . Chum salmon usually spawn in late fall and in the lower tributaries along the coast, rarely more than 150 kilometres inland. Fries emerge in the spring, go directly to sea, and live between 3 and 5 years.

Coho salmon can weigh between 2kg – 5.5 kg when they are fully matured and are typically between56 cm – 66 cm in length. Life cycle 3 year. At around 3 years of age, adult coho usually return to freshwater between late summer and early fall choosing streams close to the ocean; although some will journey as far as 1,500 kilometres inland to spawn! Young coho fry are different than the other salmon species as they stay in their spawning stream for a full year after they emerge from the gravel.

Pink salmon weigh approximately 2kg, grow to a length of 35 cm – 46 cm, and have a life cycle of 2 years. Pink salmon Migrate to the sea as soon as they emerge from the gravel and live almost their entire two years in ocean feeding areas. Adults leave the ocean in the late summer and early fall and usually spawn in streams, not fed by lakes, that are a short distance from the sea.

Sockeye salmon weigh approximately 2.7kg, grow to a length between 51 cm – 61 cm, and have a life cycle of 5 years. Sockeye spawn in streams with lakes in their watershed and stay in those lakes for one to three years before migrating to the sea. They move rapidly out of the estuaries and thousands of miles into the Gulf of Alaska and the North Pacific Ocean where they feed and grow bigger. They return to their spawning stream when they are between three to six years old.

Chinook salmon weigh approximately 9 kg, can grow to a length between 56 cm – 81 cm, and their life cycle is 4 – 7 years. Chinook salmon migrate upstream from the spring through the fall as far as 1,500 kilometres inland. Chinook fry may go to sea soon after hatching, or after one to two years in freshwater.

Salmon are the key to a way of life rooted in the North Pacific environment; protect salmon and you protect forests, food, water, communities, and economies. Healthy salmon-bearing watersheds around the North Pacific not only provide a place for salmon to reproduce but also provide clean drinking water and help absorb carbon, slowing climate change.

Millions of people around the Pacific Rim rely on salmon as a healthy source of protein and nutrients. Pacific salmon fuel a $3 billion industry, supporting tens of thousands of jobs, local economies and communities.

Our conservation work at the Homalco-Taggares salmon hatchery in Orford Bay over the last two decades has shown that only an aggressive, proactive approach on the strongest remaining salmon rivers can halt the decline of these iconic species and all the benefits we derive from them.

There are many easy ways that you can contribute to the protection and revitalization of salmon populations. Here are some simple ones:

• Only buy wild salmon. Farmed salmon can contaminate the environment as uneaten food, and chemicals used in the farming sink below the open water pens and pollute surrounding areas. And because farmed salmon live close together diseases like salmon lice populations grow unchecked and can infect wild fish more easily. As little as one or two sea lice can be enough to kill a baby salmon.
• Use the bus, carpool, ride your bike, or walk whenever and wherever you can! This keeps the air and water clean for all of us, including salmon.
• Limit your shower time and turn off faucets/showers when you are not using them! When you conserve water, you leave more water for the salmon!
• Storm drains go right into our rivers, lakes, and wetlands. Wash your car on the lawn to prevent soap from going into storm drains. Never dump liquids with chemicals down storm drains! Salmon cannot live in polluted water!
• Conserve electricity by turning off the lights when you are not using them! Conserving electricity means less need for dams and more salmon.
• Compost and then use that compost instead of fertilizer for your garden and plants! This helps reduce waste and keeps chemicals and fertilizers out of our rivers and streams
• Plant native plants! Native plants are better adapted to the environment, needing less water and not needing fertilizer or pesticides. This saves water for the salmon and keeps the rivers healthier.
• Be careful what you flush down your toilet or sink! Only flush biodegradable products. Avoid chemicals and try to avoid using the garbage disposal! Anything you flush or drain makes its way to our streams and rivers.
• Use low-flow toilets and showers or stick a brick or jug of water in the back of your toilet to make it use less water. This can save ½ gallon of water per flush, which leaves more water for salmon.
• Get involved! Volunteer with your community to help restore wetlands and riparian zones. Contact your city to find out how and where you can volunteer.
• Share what you know! Tell your neighbours, friends, and parents what you’ve learned and teach them how they can help salmon too!

Come on a tour with us and see some ƛoχʷay!