| Alevin |
Newly hatched salmon still feeding on its egg sac. Once the egg
sac is consumed, the alevin "button up" and begin feeding
in the river, at which time it is considered a "fry." |
| Anadromous |
A fish that spends its early life in fresh water, moves into the
ocean where it attains sexual maturity and spends most of its life,
then returns to fresh water to spawn. |
| Caudal Fin |
The tail fin of a fish. |
| Chinook |
One of five species of Pacific salmon, also called "king"
salmon. |
| Chum |
One of five species of Pacific salmon, also called "dog"
salmon. |
| Coho |
One of five species of Pacific salmon, also called "silver"
salmon. |
| Dorsal Fin |
The fin on the very top of a salmon's back. |
| Estuary |
An area where fresh river water flows into the ocean and mixes with
salt water. This is an important spot for migrating smolt and fry
to adjust to the salt water. |
| Fry |
The stage after the salmon absorbs its yolk sac and begins to feed. |
| Fish Wheel |
A trap made to sit along the edge of a river. As the current turns
the wheel, baskets scoop up migrating salmon and dump them through
a chute into a holding box. |
| Gill |
Thin membranes behind the head of a fish that enable it to breathe
under water. Oxygen passes through and carbon dioxide passes out. |
| Gill Netting |
A special net used for both subsistence and commercial fishing,
working by catching a salmon right behind the gill covers. |
| Hatchery |
A facility where fish are spawned and raised. |
| Imprinting |
The phenomenon through which young salmon are able to "imprint"
the location of their home stream into their memory, helping them
to eventually return to this same stream to spawn. |
| Milt |
A milky substance which includes sperm, that male salmon deposit
onto the eggs to fertilize them. |
| Parr |
Juvenile salmon with vertical bars or "parr marks" running
down their side to serve as camouflage. |
| Pink |
One of five species of Pacific salmon, also called "humpy"
or "humpback" salmon. |
| Redd |
A nest that a female salmon digs with her tail into the gravel river
bed to lay eggs in. |
| Scales |
Tiny, over-lapping plates that protect a fish. |
| Smolt
|
The stage at which a salmon migrates to open ocean to begin feeding
and growing. |
| Smoltification |
The process in which a young salmon begins to lose its parr marks,
grows larger, and adapts for life in salt water. |
| Sockeye |
One of the five species of Pacific salmon, also called "red"
salmon. |
| Spawn |
To reproduce through means of egg deposit and fertilization. |
| Subsistence |
The harvest of resources in order to feed one's family. Many rural
areas of Alaska depend on subsistence fishing as a food source and
it is often considered an integral part of the local culture. |
| Swim Bladder |
A small air sac that a fish inflates to control its
buoyancy. |
| Tributary |
A small creek or stream that flows into a larger river system. |
| Yolk Sac |
A sac of nutrients left after an alevin hatches and emerges. The
yolk sac is used as a source of food for the alevin until it can feed
on its own. |
