Species of the Week: Sockeye Salmon

Species of the Week:
Sockeye Salmon(Oncorhynchus nerka)

1. Is a type of salmon that is usually red, can grow up to 84cm and  weighs from 2 to 7 kg.
2. It can be found in the Pacific and like other salmon are anadromous. This that the young are born in freshwater, make their way to the sea where they grow to a certain age and make their way upstream where they give birth in freshwater.
3. Their bodies become red and their faces turn green when they begin returning to their spawning grown.
4. They mostly feed on zooplankton.
5. To avoid predation these salmon change their position in the water column, timing and length of feeding and school formation.
6. Salmon are considered semelparous which means that they will die once they breed once.
7. When mating, competition between these salmon occurs, with males establishing an dominant male who gets to mate with the female.
8. However it is not always so as some males will sneakily mate with the females when the dominant male isn't present.
9. Females choose the nest site, prepare the nest and defend it until they die.
10. Salmon are considered very important for many forest habitats in neighboring the Pacific as the salmon provide nutrients for the plants after they die as well as food for scavengers.