Salmon Information And Facts.
Scientific Name: Salmo Salar
Maximum Weight: 80lb (36.32kg)
Maximum Length: 60in (1.5 m)
Average Weight Caught: 5lb (2.27kg)
Life Span: 5 years
In fresh water the female develops a dark grey back silvery flanks and a pink belly, the male becomes brick red with a hooked lower jaw. The salmon has a mouth full of sharp teeth. They have a broad tail which gives them huge power. The Atlantic salmon have a smaller head than their Pacific cousins.
British Record: 64lb (1922)
Scottish Record:
Irish Lake:
Irish River: 57lb (1874)
Welsh Record:
Glendelvine Water River Tay Scotland
River Suir Waterford Ireland
River Lled Wales
River Annan Scotland
River Beauly Scotland
River Tweed England/Scotland
River Tay Scotland
There are many fish of many colours and sizes but the salmon is know quite simply as the king of fish and rightly so for this amazing species that swins to and fro accross the channel as part of its life cycle.
THE LIFE CYCLE OF THE SALMON.
The female Hen salmon digs herself a shallow nest called a redd in the gravel with her powerful tail. She uses her anal fin to check the depth of the nest. She stops when she gets to about 15-30 cm deep when she then fills the nest with eggs and the male who is in constant attendance during nest building contributes his milt. The female covers the nest using her tail again and the young known as alevin hatch in April-May and remain in the gravel living off their yolk sack for the first few weeks. At this stage it must survive the cold spring surviving on insect larvae. The young develop the thumbprint markings and after around two years salt excreting cells develop along with the scales starting to turn silver this stage the young are know as parr. From this point once the salmon has turned completely silver it is known as a smolt and it journeys down river to the mouth where it eats shrimp, whitebait sandeels and smaller members of the cod family. The salmon increase in size hugely increasing their weight as much as 20 times in a year. Indeed those salmon who stay at sea for two years or more prior to making the journey up stream can reach up to 40lb in weight. When salmon make their way up stream to spawn they famously jump anything in their path.
SALMON FEEDING.
Salmon do not feed once they get into fresh water but can take the fly as part of their feeding reflex and when they do they offer the angler a fighting treat and a half.
The Salmon Vital Statistics.
Knowing Your Salmon.
Salmon Records.
Top Salmon Waters.