Wild salmon fertilize the temperate rainforest with the open ocean nutrients stored in their bodies.
Rich in nitrogen from the sea, the rotting salmon flesh fertilizes forest growth. Salmon promote forest health. Giant trees require nitrogen to grow massive canopies that shade the streams and absorb excessive rainfall.
One of the next things we asked ourselves was; how do trees affect salmon life cycle?
Because the salmon life cycle is so closely tied to the state of the trees surrounding spawning sites, changes to the forest can start a chain reaction that affects the health of fish populations. “Trees are a key component of most watershed processes.
Why are salmon important to the ecosystem?
The salmon in turn provide essential nutrients that fuel the growth of forest ecosystems. As salmon mature, they migrate from the streams and rivers of their youth to the ocean, where they feed upon zooplankton, krill, and small fish. When adult salmon are ready to spawn, they migrate to the same freshwater rivers and streams where they were born.
The bears who feast on the spawning salmon don’t eat on the river – they drag the carcasses far into the forest. The remains of the salmon contain vast quantities of nitrogen that plants need to grow.
The remains of the salmon contain vast quantities of nitrogen that plants need to grow. Eighty percent of the nitrogen in the forest’s trees comes from the salmon. In other words, these ocean dwellers are crucial for the forest’s long-term survival.
What do salmon eat when they migrate?
As salmon mature, they migrate from the streams and rivers of their youth to the ocean, where they feed upon zooplankton, krill, and small fish. When adult salmon are ready to spawn, they migrate to the same freshwater rivers and streams where they were born.
Assuming an average fish weight of 5.9 pounds, this equals about 118 million lbs. Of biomass that salmon distributed throughout the watershed including important nutrients estimated at about 55,000 lbs. Of Phosphorus, 40,000 lbs. Of Nitrogen, and 590,000 lbs. Of Calcium 10.
What animals migrate through the forest?
The forest is the scene of one of nature’s most impressive migrations; the perilous journey of the Pacific salmon from the sea through the forest rivers to spawn in its creeks. The salmon run draws carnivores such as bears and wolves to the river bank, where they gorge on the migrating fish.