SALMON FISHERIES OF ALASKA. 
25 
first in the month of May iu southern Alaska and about the 6th of June in Norton 
Sound. The dog salmon and the red salmon appear in June, the humpbacks in July, 
and the silver salmon in August. The length of their stay at the river mouths before 
ascending and the rate of ascent to the spawning-grounds depend upon the urgency 
of the breeding condition. In the long rivers the king salmon travels from“20 to 40 
miles a day ; this species and the red salmon are reported to be the greatest travelers. 
The silver and dog salmon, however, are recorded by Dr. Dali as traversing the Yukon 
at least 1,000 miles. As a rule, they frequent the smaller streams, and the little hump- 
back runs into mere rivulets. 
From the time the salmon enters fresh water it begins to deteriorate in flesh and 
undergoes remarkable changes in form and color. Arriving as a shapely fish, clad in 
shining silvery scales, and with its flesh pink or red, it plays around for a little while 
between saltwater and fresh, and then begins its long fast and its wearisome journey. 
No food is taken, and there are shoals, rapids, and sometimes cataracts to surmount; 
but the salmon falters not, nor can it be prevented from accomplishing its mission by 
anything but death or an impassable barrier. Its body soon becomes thin and lacer- 
ated, and its fins are worn to shreds by contact with the sharp rocks. In the males 
a great hump is developed on the back behind the head, and the jaws are lengthened 
and distorted so that the month can not be closed. The wounded fish are soon 
attacked by the salmon fungus, and progress from bad to worse until they become 
unsightly. In the mean time the body colors will have varied from dark gray in the 
humpback, with the lower parts milky white, to a brilliant vermilion in the red salmon, 
contrasting beautifully with the rich olive-green of its head. The excessive mortality 
of salmon during the ascent of the streams and on the breeding-grounds has led to 
the belief that none of the spawning fish leave the fresh water alive. There is a sub- 
stantial basis for this view in the long rivers, and it is doubtless true that a journey 
of 500 miles or more is followed by the death of all the salmon concerned in it. 
The nest is a very simple affair, or it may be wanting. The humpback struggles 
and crowds up a few rods from the sea, and deposits its eggs between crevices in the 
bowlders covering the bottom, or sometimes they are strewn in' thin layers over a 
large area in shallow water without covering of any kind. The king salmon seeks the 
headwaters of streams, and excavates a nest in clear, shallow, gravelly rapids. The 
dog salmon spawns in small rivers and creeks. 
The silver salmon does not usually ascend streams to a great distance, and I have 
seen it return to salt water alive, after spawning. The nest is made among gravel 
and stones, from which all dirt and slime have been removed. Both sexes take part in 
the building operation, and the male especially guards the nest. Turner states that 
the silver salmon use their snouts in collecting material for the nests, and he has seen 
them with the nose worn off completely. 
The red salmon spawns around the shores of deep, cool lakes, and in their tribu- 
taries, preferring waters whose highest temperature rarely exceeds 55 degrees. The 
nest is a shallow, circular pile of stones, some of which are about as large as a man’s 
hand and some of them smaller. The eggs are placed in crevices between the stones- 
The enemies of the salmon are numerous. Small fish called sculpins, or miller’s 
thumbs, swarm in the nests and eat large quantities of the eggs. Trout devour great 
numbers of eggs and young salmon. Gulls, terns, loons, and other birds gorge them- 
selves with the tender fry. When the young approach the sea they must run a cruel 
