Salmon

Salmon

Most salmon farms hold more than one-half million fish penned in open net-cages, mostly Atlantic salmon. There are over 100 open net-cage farms growing farmed salmon in sheltered bays along the British Columbia coast.

Waste, chemicals, disease, and parasites from the farms pass through the mesh and pollute the surrounding water and seabed. Especially harmful are the sea lice who attach to wild juvenile salmon on their migration out to sea. Too many sea lice can kill the young wild salmon.

Storms, accidents and predators can tear the nets allowing the farmed fish to escape. Predators like seals and sea lions are often shot. Many marine mammals get entangled in the nets and drown.

King (chinook): The lushest fresh salmon, king is the highest in fat and usually the most expensive, prized for its silken, melting texture, which is almost like smoked salmon.

Kingdom:    Animalia

Phylum:      Chordata

Class: Actinopterygii

Order:         Salmoniformes

Family:       Salmonidae

Genus:        Oncorhynchus

Species:      O. tshawytscha

Binomial name: Oncorhynchus tshawytscha

Ocean

Freshwater

Sockeye (red): With a deep, natural color, sockeye is lower in fat but still high overall, allowing the flavor to better come through. Many salmon lovers, including me, consider this the best salmon-eating experience.

Kingdom:    Animalia

Phylum:      Chordata

Class: Actinopterygii

Order:         Salmoniformes

Family:       Salmonidae

Genus:        Oncorhynchus

Species:      O. nerka

Binomial name: Oncorhynchus nerka

sockeye

Coho (silver): A comer, according to Bill Webber and Thea Thomas, independent Cordovan fishermen. It’s already prized by sport fishermen for its fight, and soon, the Cordovans hope, by diners for its mild but distinctive flavor. The most widely available autumn fresh salmon.

Kingdom:    Animalia

Phylum:      Chordata

Class: Actinopterygii

Order:         Salmoniformes

Family:       Salmonidae

Genus:        Oncorhynchus

Species:      O. kisutch

Binomial name: Oncorhynchus kisutch

Coho Salmon

Pink (humpback): So delicate and pale that Thomas compares it to sole—which she does not mean as a compliment. She recalls a tasting for food writers at which many rated pink the highest. “How could they?” she asks. The likely answer: “A lot of these people had never had salmon in their life.”

Kingdom:    Animalia

Phylum:      Chordata

Class: Actinopterygii

Order:         Salmoniformes

Family:       Salmonidae

Genus:        Oncorhynchus

Species:      O. gorbuscha

Binomial name: Oncorhynchus gorbuscha

Pink Salmon

Chum (dog): Like pink, chum is fished in high numbers and is lower in fat than other varieties; when it spawns in intertidal waters, it doesn’t need to build up energy to swim upstream. Its roe, however, is the most valued of the five varieties, because of its size and flavor. After being strained and separated, the eggs make particularly good ikura— the fat, bright-orange pearls familiar in sushi rolls.

Kingdom:    Animalia

Phylum:      Chordata

Class: Actinopterygii

Order:         Salmoniformes

Family:       Salmonidae

Genus:        Oncorhynchus

Species:      O. keta

Binomial name: Oncorhynchus keta

Chum Salmon