Salmon aren’t the only fish to swim upstream against the raging forces of nature. During the trip, it is not uncommon for the fish to scale up 100-meter waterfalls . Unlike salmon, they don’t do this by jumping; instead, they use their mouths as a sort of suction device.
The fishes which swim upstream from sea to freshwater are called Anadromous fishes. Amongst them are Sturgeon also called Acipenser, Shad (Alosa), sea trout, Salmon (Salmo salar) and Hilsa (Hilsa ilisha). These fishes undertake this migration for breeding.
Salmon swim upstream to mate and lay their eggs for several reasons. Laying their eggs in small rivers and shallow waters help protect them from larger fish that would happily eat them as a snack in the ocean. The shallow streams and rivers also provide shelter for the eggs so they don’t get washed away by heavy currents.
Do salmon swim up stream against the currents?
The run up the river can be exhausting, sometimes requiring the salmon to battle hundreds of miles upstream against strong currents and rapids. They cease feeding during the run. [5] Chinook and sockeye salmon from central Idaho must travel 900 miles (1,400 km) and climb nearly 7,000 feet (2,100 m) before they are ready to spawn.
Salmon can undertake extensive ocean migrations of over 3,000 miles, and average approximately 18 miles per day depending on the species. Generally, juvenile salmon from southwestern Alaska streams migrate from the Bristol and Kuskokwim bays through the Aleutian Island chain into the northern Pacific Ocean and the Gulf of Alaska.
What season of the year do salmon swim up stream?
Most salmon species migrate during the fall ( September through November ). Most salmon mostly spend their early life in rivers or lakes, and then swim out to sea where they live their adult lives and gain most of their body mass.