ABSTRACT 



Pink salmon, Oncorhynchus gorbuscha, also called humpback salmon, are the most abundant 

 of the Pacific salmon in Alaska. Alaska production of pink salmon has an average wholesale value 

 of $28 million and constitutes more than half of the total North American catch. Female pink 

 salmon carry about 2,000 eggs each and spawn in late summer or early fall. The resulting fry emerge 

 the following spring and migrate directly to salt water. They spend 1 year at sea and return as 

 2-year-olds to spawn and die in their native stream. Alaskan pink salmon usually spawn only a short 

 distance from the sea; many even spawn in intertidal streambeds. Fewer than 25 percent of the 

 young survive from the time of spawning until the time of emergence from the gravel. Similar low 

 survival rates prevail during the estuarine and oceanic portions of the life cycle. Pink salmon are 

 just over 1 inch long when they enter the sea, but they grow to an average length of about 20 

 inches and weigh about 4 pounds as adults. Research biologists of several agencies assist fishery 

 managers by determining the migration paths and the factors that affect abundance of pink salmon. 



IV 



