We know the smolts feed on plankton and invertebrates to grow into the adult salmon you recognize from ocean docks and your local seafood counter. But we don’t know the whole story. For example, why do sockeye stocks swell every four years? How do salmon find feeding habitats thousands of miles from their freshwater hatching grounds? And what exactly triggers their return home?
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Working together to solve the mystery
When salmon began dying in the Salish Sea – the coastal waters of Puget Sound, the Strait of Georgia and the Strait of Juan de Fuca – North American scientists teamed up to find answers. The rich Salish Sea ecosystem supports approximately 3,000 marine species and all seven species of Pacific salmon, but the waters are getting warmer and more acidic, while marine plant and animal populations are shifting. A large-scale study of the Salish Sea ecosystem and the complex factors affecting young salmon is now underway. The Marine Survival Project is helping us to learn more about salmon in salt water and seeking effective ways to support this cornerstone species.
Preparing for the big migration
Here’s what else we know: salmon thrive in cold ocean waters – and sockeye take on that familiar reddish-orange colour from feasting on krill. Salmon eat a lot at sea and will typically gain about half of their full adult mass during their last six months in salt water. When it’s time to migrate home, salmon stop eating before they enter the river. Fuelled entirely by stored energy (primarily fat), they swim thousands of miles upstream, dodging predators and various dangers in an astonishing journey to their spawning grounds. They reproduce, perish and replenish the environment with essential nutrients – and the cycle continues.
Get involved
Learn more about the Salish Sea Marine Survival Project or connect with our partners at the Pacific Salmon Foundation. Help us ensure the salmon keep swimming in our coastal waters.
