In general the order in which the 

 species are discussed here is the se- 

 quence of their time of entering the 

 streams to spawn, as well as the dis- 

 tance they ascend the streams. 

 Those which run first go farthest. 

 The economic value of the individ- 

 ual fish of each species rates in the 

 order given, but the magnitude and 

 the overall value of the species differ 

 from the order of listing. 



The identifying characteristics 

 for the systematic classification of 

 the adults of the various species of 

 salmon are reported by Jordan 

 (1925), Schultz (1936), Clemens 

 and Wilby (1946), and many 

 others ; characteristics for the iden- 

 tification of young salmon, by For- 

 ester and Pritchard (1944) , Schultz 

 and Hanson (1935), and others. 

 The identifying characteristics are 

 not repeated here. 



Oncorhy^7ichu.s tshawytscha: Chi- 

 nook (Columbia Kiver and south), 

 spring (British Columbia), king 

 (Alaska), quinnat, tyee, Columbia 

 or Sacramento salmon. 



Range : Bering Sea to Monterey 

 Bay, but predominant in the Colum- 

 bia and Sacramento Rivers. Of the 

 1951 United States and Alaska pack 

 of canned chinook salmon, 61 per- 

 cent was from the Columbia River, 

 though many of the fish originating 

 in this river were taken at sea or 

 landed elsewhere. 



Weight: Average at maturity, 

 from 12 to 40 pounds. Fish of 

 greater average weight are found 

 in Ahiska, and fish of progressively 

 smaller weights are taken farther 

 south. The average for the Cohun- 

 bia River is 20 to 22 pounds; and 

 for the Sacramento River, about 16 



pounds. The maximum weight of 

 chinook salmon is about 120 pounds, 

 but 50- to 80-pound fish are quite 

 common in Alaskan waters. 



The species is the first of the sal- 

 mon to enter the rivers in the early 

 spring, but the spawning migra- 

 tions are distinctly separated into 

 spring and fall runs, and often a 

 summer run is considered to exist. 

 The spring run consists of the most 

 desirable fish, entering the rivers in 

 the spring of the year and ascend- 

 ing farthest upstream. The fall 

 run enters the rivers in August and 

 September. The fall fish are some- 

 what heavier than the spring fish 

 and are more nearly mature upon 

 entering the rivers ; the flesh of the 

 fall fish is soft and pale when in the 

 river, and the exterior has the dis- 

 coloration typical of salmon ap- 

 proaching the time of spawning. 

 The fall chinook do not seek the 

 upper reaches of the streams to 

 s})awn. On the Columbia River the 

 bulk of the fall chinooks spawn 

 within 200 miles of the ocean, 

 mostly within a few miles of salt 

 water. 



Spawning of spring-run chinooks 

 may occur as early as mid- July; 

 that of the fall run in August and 

 September, and often into October. 

 In some streams south of Sacra- 

 mento, spawning may take place in 

 midwinter. In one small stream 

 tributary to the Columbia River, 

 fall chinooks of large size have been 

 observed spawning in December, 

 considerably later than is usual in 

 the watershed. 



Chinooks usually are 4 years of 

 age at the time of spawning, but a 

 few may be younger and substantial 



8 



