ALASKA SALMON

ALASKA SALMON


The five species of Alaska Salmon are members of a large family of fish
known as salmonidae which are abundant throughout the Temperate
Zones of the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. Salmon and their
salmonidae relatives, which include Atlantic Salmon, are active and
aggressive predators who demand the high levels of oxygen most
commonly found in cold, rushing streams, estuaries and the upper
levels of the ocean.
Pacific Salmon occur from California north along the Pacific coast
throughout the Pacific Ocean, Bering Sea and Arctic Ocean waters
adjacent to Alaska. Alaska's Salmon resource is the greatest in the
world.
Alaska Salmon belong to the genus Oncorhynchus, a name formed
by combining two Greek words, onco meaning hook or barb, and
rhyno, nose. The scientific names for each of the five species were
given during the exploration of Siberia, and reflect the native vernacular
names for the fish. Thus, we have O. gorbusha, O. keta, O. kisutch, O.
nerka and O. tschawytscha or, respectively, Pink, Chum, Coho,
Sockeye and King Salmon.
Alaska Salmon are anadromous, that is, they spawn in fresh water
and the young migrate to the sea where they mature. The timing of
spawning and migration varies among the five species, but the fact that
they all need abundant, pure, fresh water for spawning makes them
particularly vulnerable to man. The fresh water that attracts the
maturing Salmon from the ocean vastness to the interior of the
continent to spawn also draws the Salmon to man's doorstep where,
like other fish, he is easy prey to fishermen.


Until recently, man was just another of the Salmon's many
predators, but in the Twentieth Century there is a new and more
serious threat to the world's Salmon stocks: civilization. Dams,
irrigation, logging and industrial pollution, huge cities and even
residential development all compete with Salmon for the pure, fresh
water that is essential to the beginning and end of their life cycle.

Although the spawning characteristics of each of the five species of
Alaska Salmon differ, each maintains the same timing year after year,
and, with few exceptions, the mature adults return to the stream of
their birth. That timing is so precise, in fact, that a variation of a week
or two is considered extreme.

Salmon which will spawn in the headwaters of a river or lake
system, Kings, some Silvers and sometimes Sockeyes, arrive earlier
than the Pinks and Chums which spawn closer to tidewater. Because
Salmon do not eat after they have entered fresh water, they leave the
ocean heavy with the fats and nutrients on which they will subsist
during their freshwater phase. The longer and more rigorous the
freshwater trip, the more fat the fish will carry as he leaves the ocean. A
Yukon River King headed for spawning grounds 2,400 miles away and
2,200 feet above sea level near Lake Teslin will enter the river an
unusually rich, vigorous fish.
How Salmon return so unerringly from mid-ocean to a stream
which may be only a trickle hundreds of miles from tidewater is not
fully understood by biologists.
Except where man has interfered, however, the Salmon returning to
the various river systems and streams of Alaska are unique species who
may mingle in the ocean and even in the estuary, but return faithfully to
the gravel from which they emerged two to six years earlier.
Fish that enter fresh water early in the season are more brightly
colored than those that arrive later, but all Salmon turn darker as the
time to spawn approaches. Pronounced morphological changes take
place particularly in the spawning male; the upper jaw develops a hook
that prevents the fish from closing his mouth, and sharp canine teeth
appear in both upper and lower jaws. In some species, a hump develops
behind the head and the graceful, streamlined, salt-water fish becomes a
fierce-looking, dramatically marked creature.


Five to seven months after spawning, the young Salmon fry emerge
from the gravel where the spawning pair deposited and fertilized the
eggs the fall before. Some of the fry will go to sea almost immediately,
while others, such as Sockeye, King and Silver will remain in streams
and lakes for a year or more.
When the fry do migrate toward the sea, they undergo certain
changes which prepare them for life in salt water and during this stage
of life it is called a smolt. In the estuary, where salt and fresh water mix
and food is abundant, the smolt may double or even triple its weight
before venturing westward into the Gulf of Alaska or Bering Sea.
Depending on the species, the Salmon may go within a few miles of the
Kamchatka Peninsula which extends southward from Siberia toward
the western tip of the Aleutian Islands.

Growth rates in the ocean are no less astonishing than those in the
estuary. A two-inch Pink Salmon which leaves the estuary and moves
offshore in early-to-mid summer can return slightly more than a year
later as a two-foot, five-pound adult. Pink Salmon spend a year in
ocean waters; other species may spend four, five or even six years in
the ocean pastures growing to prodigious size. A 126-pound King
Salmon landed in southeastern Alaska is thought to have spent seven
years in the ocean.


SALMON FISHING

The regularity and precision with which Salmon return to their natal
waters to spawn makes them uniquely vulnerable to all predators, and
particularly to man.

TROLLING
In southeastern Alaska the first commercial fishermen to encounter
Salmon are members of the troll fleet. Trollers are small fishing vessels
operated by one or two people who fish with a number of lines and
hooks baited with herring or artificial lures. Of all the commercial
Salmon fishing methods, trolling may be the least efficient from the
standpoint of intercepting fish. High-seas trollers must search for fish in
the open ocean; net fishermen by contrast, wait in areas where Salmon
are known to school in the migratory route.
By way of compensation, trollers are allowed to fish beyond the
inshore limits set for net fishermen, and generally have more days of
fishing time. Modern fishery management tends to favor inshore
methods and it is unlikely troll fishing will be significantly expanded.

Troll-caught fish are usually "ocean caught" or "brights;' that is,
they are caught before maturity when they are moving inshore and
feeding heavily. They are attractive fish, somewhat smaller, perhaps,
than those caught by the net fisheries, but in full vigor of their ocean
period. Only Coho, King and Pink Salmon are taken in any number by
the troll fleet and all three species, when delivered by a competent
fisherman, command a premium price.
The volume of troll-caught fish is much smaller than that for net-
caught fish. Troll-caught Salmon generally make up less than 10
percent of the total Alaska catch of all species of Salmon.
What they lack in quantity, troll-caught Salmon make up in quality
No fish is treated with more care from the time it leaves the water until
it is delivered to the retailer's door. A sharp rap on the head quiets the
fish before the hook is removed; a thrashing fish is apt to bruise himself
or dislodge scales.
The fish is then gilled and gutted. Ice will be carefully packed in the
body and head cavity and the fish will be laid on a layer of ice in such a
way that the body cavities can drain freely. The surrounding ice will be
arranged so that no fish comes in contact with another fish and so that
all liquids drain away from the fish and into the vessel's bilge where it is
pumped overboard. If the vessel has freezing capability, the fish will be
blast-frozen much the way it is ashore, dipped in fresh water to form an
ice glaze and placed carefully in the hold.
Almost all troll-caught fish go into the fresh, frozen or smoked
market. The small number of fish represented in the troll catch,
combined with their uniform attractiveness, make them the most
valuable, pound for pound, of the Alaska Salmon.

GILLNETTING.

The greatest number of Alaska Salmon are caught in gillnets of one
type or another.
Gillnetting involves laying a net wall in the water in the path of the
fish and waiting for it to put its head into the mesh. When it does, the
gills become entangled in the webbing and prevent the fish from escaping.

Most gillnetters are small one and two-man boats. State law
dictates that gillnetters in Bristol Bay may be no longer than 32 feet.
Most gillnetters outside of Bristol Bay are in the 32 to 42 foot range.
A gillnet fisherman uses a net from 900 to 1800 feet long, a choice made not
by him, but by the State of Alaska for fisheries management reasons.
Some gillnetters are equipped to carry their fish in ice, or even in
refrigerated holds, but the vast majority deliver their cargo daily. In
areas like Bristol Bay, where fishing can be extremely heavy, a
gillnetter may be forced to deliver every few hours simply because the
small vessel will not hold the quantity of fish caught in a day. In such
cases, the hold is usually divided into several bins, and each bin is lined
with a cargo net. When the gillnetter comes alongside the tendering
vessel, the cargo nets are simply lifted aboard, emptied and returned to
the catcher vessel. The cargo-net system, relatively new in the fishery,
reduces handling of the fish, and has contributed significantly to the
quality of the catch.

PURSE SEINING

Large numbers of Salmon are caught with seines in southeastern
Alaska, central Alaska and western Alaska up to the tip of the Alaska
Peninsula. No purse seining is allowed east of the Alaska Peninsula on
the north side. Purse seiners are generally larger than gillnetters, but by
Alaska Law may be no longer than 58 feet. Those fishing in south-
eastern Alaska are larger vessels capable of operating in the sometimes
stormy fjords and channels found in that part of the state.
A purse seine is a net which is set in a circle and can be drawn
closed at the bottom. Because Salmon migrate in tight schools, it is not
unusual for an Alaskan seiner to "wrap up" 250 to 1500 fish or more
with one set. In addition, the Salmon's tendency to jump and "fin" on
the surface gives away the school's location as it moves through the
water. When not actually engaged in setting or retrieving the net, every
person on a purse seiner is watching the water for a sign of fish.


PROCESSING/ TRANSPORTING

Most Alaska Salmon are transferred from the fishing vessel to a
tender which carries the catches of several vessels from a remote
fishing spot to a processing plant. The tender system allows fishing
vessels to fish while support vessels run back and forth between the
plant and the fishing grounds. The system also permits the plant
manager to schedule and stagger the fish deliveries so that he can
employ his plant personnel effectively and assure a smooth flow of fish
throughout the plant.
One of the problems inherent in the Alaska Salmon industry is the
fact that the fish in most river systems return in astounding numbers
during a brief period of time. One year recently, for example, more than
62 million fish went through Bristol Bay in a little more than three
weeks' time. The problem, then, is not so much one of catching the fish,
but of timely distribution to appropriate markets and processing
facilities.
 
FRESH SALMON

Fresh fish can be flown to markets as far away as Europe or Japan.
Sometimes from remote areas, single shipments of Salmon may be
flown by helicopter from a tender on the fishing grounds to a local
airport, from the local airport to Anchorage in a prop-jet, and from
Anchorage to Chicago, Paris, Dallas, Tokyo or Copenhagen in a jumbo
jet. Forty-eight hours after he was pulled from the water, an Alaskan
Salmon can be the featured item at a restaurant in Paris or Tokyo.
Other fish are frozen on the grounds by floating processors which
may move with the fish from one area to another, and by shore-based
plants which are usually equipped to both freeze and can product.
No matter whether it is caught by a troller, gillnetter, or seiner, a
Salmon is a valuable product, and processors make every effort to treat
it as such.

After Salmon are unloaded from the tender, they are immediately
iced in large self-draining storage bins called totes. As they are brought
on to the processing line, they are graded by species, then eviscerated
and headed if they are to be frozen. Some fish destined for the fresh
market may keep their heads. Until recently, Salmon for the fresh and
frozen market were all butchered by hand; only in the past few years or
so have machines been developed to effectively accomplish the task.
After being headed and gutted, the fish are graded by size and quality.

FROZEN SALMON

After grading, the fish are individually quick frozen and glazed. The
glazing, a thin coat of fresh water ice achieved by dipping the frozen
fish several times in cold water, seals air away from the fish. Fish may
also be vacuum packed before freezing.

 
CANNED SALMON

As recently as ten years ago, Salmon canneries dominated the
Alaska Seafood industry. A cannery converts an enormous amount of
fish into a tasty and wholesome product in a very short period of time.
Although freezing allows the processor a great deal more flexibility in
the way he can handle and market his product, freezers cannot handle
the product volume of canneries.

SALMON QUALITY

The determination of value of a particular fish, or of a parcel of
salmon, is complicated by a variety of intrinsic and extrinsic factors, all
of which must be considered and play a part in the determination.
Changing one or more factors as its relative importance changes the
whole picture. The establishment of a value or level of preference
depends on the size, external and internal color characteristics, fat
content, degree of maturity, method of capture, freshness and state of
preservation/method of preservation. Thus "quality" relates to the
characteristics of the fish itself as well as its state of freshness or
preservation. Intended use, market conditions and availability also
affect value.


NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION

Few single foods bring as many valuable contributions to the table
in significant quantities as Alaska Salmon. It is an excellent source of
high-quality protein, containing all the essential amino acids. Salmon
contains vitamins A, D, B6 and B2, as well as niacin and riboflavin.
Calcium, iron, zinc, magnesium and phosphorus are also present in
appreciable amounts in this choice seafood. The fats in Salmon are
predominantly un-saturated. Furthermore, there is evidence to indicate
these unsaturated fats help avoid development of artery disease.
Salmon is an excellent food both for young children and older people
because there is no connective tissue as there is in meats and poultry.

NUTRITIONAL VALUE OF ALASKA SALMON--AVERAGES

Values for Fresh/Frozen and Canned Salmon

100 GRAMS                         KING        SOCKEYE   SILVER   PINK    CHUM
WEIGHT PORTION (31/2 OUNCES)    (Chinook)      (Red)    (Coho)          (Keta)
Protein, grams                      19         20       20       20      20
  (18-20)      (20-22)  (20-22)  (19-20) (20-21)
Fat, grams                          12         8        6        5       4
  (11-18)      (6-11)   (5-6)    (4-7)   (4-7)
Carbohydrate, grams                 0          0        0        0       0
Calories                           189         157      139      130     121

Analyses of fresh and frozen Salmon performed on the raw muscle
without skin and bones. Analyses of canned Salmon on total contents
of can, including skin and bones. Nutritive values are similar for
fresh/frozen and canned Salmon.
Values in parentheses are ranges of mean values reported in the
pertinent references by various investigators.
Source: Compilation and review of data by John A. Dassow, Deputy
Director (Ret.), Northwest and Alaska Fisheries Center, Utilization
Research Division, U.S. Department of Commerce, NOAA, and
Donald M. Crosgrove, Chief Chemist, Food Processors Association
Laboratory, Seattle, WA (1982)

From the time of the great clipper ships that set sail from San Francisco
and Astoria to the Alaska fishing grounds, the story of Alaska Salmon
has been one of logistics and risk. The early Salmon barons who
watched their ships sail over the horizon in March, did not know until
October if the ship would return deeply laden with canned and mild-
cured Salmon, or had sunk three days out of port. They knew what the
term "risk capital" meant. The fishermen who braved the wild Alaska
waters lived an independent life. Their rugged character shaped much
of what Alaska is today.
Sailing ships have been replaced by jumbo jets, and processors in
Petersburg and Pederson Point can communicate with brokers in
Buffalo or Brussels by satellite, but Salmon is still a great food from the
sea and is now available fresh, frozen and canned to more people than
ever before.

The types of salmon in detail:

King
O. tshawytscha, King, Chinook, Tyee
Range: Southeastern to Nome
Fishing methods: Gillnet, Troll, Seine
Quantity: King average: 1% by fish of the annual
Alaska Salmon harvest. 3.7% by weight of the annual
Alaska Salmon harvest.

Least abundant and largest of the Alaska Salmon, the king ranges
from 30 to 40 inches in length, and weighs from 5 to 40 pounds. The
largest officially recorded king weighed 126 pounds, but larger fish to
135 pounds are reported.
Most kings are sold fresh or frozen, but a modest number are canned in
some remote areas.
Ocean caught, or bright Kings, have a silvery  skin and scales, with
a deeper body than the other species. They are dark greenish to blue-
black on top of the head and back, silvery to white on the lower sides
and belly Many small, black spots are on the back and upper sides and
on the upper and lower halves of the silvery tail The inside of the lower
jaw is black.
Semi-bright Kings develop a slight dulling of the color along the back
which may turn to an olive brown. Dark Kings have developed a black back
with brown sides and perhaps a purplish-red on the belly.
Prime or first quality red King Salmon are the
most valuable of Alaskan Salmon owing to their
size, flesh color, fat content and texture.
Kings were the first Salmon canned but
now only a few very select fish are canned for the
specialty trade. These Salmon have red flesh, a very high fat content
and a firm succulent flesh. Highly
desirable for smoking, as well as table use.
Some prime, or first quality king Salmon
have very light colored flesh and are called White Kings. These highly
desirable and equally edible fish
are used primarily in a kippered or hot smoked and are
generally marketed in smoked sides or as slices steaks and fillets.

Sockeye
O. nerka, Sockeye, Red, Blueback
Range: Southeastern to Nome Fishing methods: Gillnet, Seine
Quantity: Sockeye average: 28.5% by fish of the annual Alaska Salmon
harvest. 32.8% by weight of the annual Alaska Salmon harvest.
One of the most valuable and abundant of the Alaska Salmon,
Sockeye have a deep, red flesh. Sockeye can grow to almost three feet
in length and weigh up to 15 pounds, but in most areas, the average fish
will be closer to 25 inches and 6 pounds. Ocean caught or bright
Sockeye am a deep greenish-blue on the top of the head and back
(hence Blueback), silver on the sides with a white belly The backs of
the semi - bright fish turn to a dull black and the belly may exhibit slight
darkening. As depicted in the illustration, Sockeye have a brilliant red
back and a green head with a very pronounced line where the red and
green meet at the gill plate.

Sockeye or Red Salmon have long been canned and are generally
considered the most valuable of canned Salmon.
In recent years they are becoming increasingly favored in the fresh and
frozen state as their unique characteristics become more widely known.
They have deep red flesh, which retains its color to a higher degree
than other Salmon when cooked or processed They are a relatively fat
fish, yet have a firm flesh as well as a full, delectable flavor. The
Sockeye color, firmness and ideal size affords a unique opportunity to
move these highly desirable fish in the fresh and frozen state into both
national and international markets. They are generally marketed in
whole, steak or fillet from backing out. Gillnets are very selective in
that they can be constructed to catch only one size of fish. A Pink or
Sockeye Salmon net may have a mesh size of four or five inches or
more. A Pink or Sockeye Salmon will swim through a King Salmon
net, and a King Salmon cannot get his head far enough into a four-inch
mesh net to get caught. When it does catch a fish, a gillnet may leave a
mark, in some cases quite pronounced. The net marking is generally
cosmetic and does not change the quality of the fish, although
sometimes bruises may occur.
Generally, those fish caught earlier in the run will be brighter than
those caught later on, but it does depend upon the specific run, not the
species. Bright Salmon will still be entering one river system while
those of the same species entering an adjacent system may be turning
dark.

Silver
O. kisutch, Silver, Coho
Range: Southeastern to Nome
fishing methods: Gillnet, Seine, Troll Quantity: Silver average: 3.5% by
fish of the annual
Alaska Salmon harvest. 5.9% by weight of the annual
Alaska Salmon harvest.

Silvers, or Coho, Salmon are the backbone of the Alaska troll
fishery. However, the majority of Silvers are caught by the net fishery,.
Silvers are unusually active and attractive fish which range from 25 to
35 inches in length, and weigh from 2 to 12 pounds. Silvers weighing
up to 33 pounds have been reported.
Ocean caught, or bright Silvers are dark metallic blue on the back
and upper sides and an intense color on the sides. A few small black
spots may be found on the silver's back and on the top half of the tail.
Pink skin or semi- bright Silvers develop a slight pink or rose shading
along the belly and the males may show a slight arching on the back.
Dark Silvers have a pronounced red skin color with darker backs;
females may be darker than the male, and both show a pronounced
hook on the nose.
Silvers have long been highly desirable for both table use and
smoking owing to their size, flesh color, relatively high fat content and
the color retention of the cooked flesh. Flesh color is an orange-red,
texture firm with a delicate, characteristic salmon flavor. Generally
marketed as whole fish, steak or fillets.

Pink
O. gorbusha, Pink, Humpback, Humpy
Range: Southeastern to the Arctic Ocean
Fishing methods: Seine, Gillnet, Troll Quantity: Pinks average: 51.7%
by fish of the annual Alaska Salmon harvest. 40% by weight of the
annual Alaska Salmon harvest.

The smallest and most abundant of the Alaska Salmon, a Pink will
run from 2 to 6 pounds with the average weighing slightly less than 4
pounds One individual weighing 14 pounds and almost 30 inches long
has been reported
Pinks return to streams on all of Alaska's coastline from the Arctic
to southeastern in a two-year cycle, and do not mow far upstream to
spawn.
Ocean bright Pinks are characterized by a slim body shiny silvery
skin, very small scales, large black spots on the tail and back.
Semi-bright show a slight distortion of the back as the hump begins
to develop in the males, deeper body in the females, the upper jaw
begins to arch, and dark bars are barely apparent on the sides.
The skin of dark Pinks has become darker
thicker and coarser and a pronounced hump has developed on the male
with darker pronounced bars
on the sides.
Most Pinks are canned but increasing numbers are entering fresh and
frozen markets.
Pink Salmon have long been canned due to their occurrence during
short periods and in large masses as schools. Recently, however, they
have become increasingly popular as small economical Salmon for table
use.
They are terrific barbecued on a charcoal grill. Pink's small size
lends them to marketing as whole fish. They are characterized by their
firm, light rose-colored flesh of fine texture and delicate flavor.

From the glazing tank, the fish are placed in either individual
polyethylene bags or tote bags which are lined with polyethylene.
Properly glazed, in a polyethylene lined container, and in still-air cold
storage at - 10 to - 20 F Salmon will remain top quality for many
months, although most prudent processors will reglaze fish that have
been in storage for five or six months. Salmon are graded again when
they are taken out of cold storage for sale to a wholesaler or retailer.

Chum
O. keta, Chum, Silverbrite, or Keta
Range: Southeastern to the Arctic Ocean Fishing methods: Gillnet,
Seine
Quantity: Chum average: 15.3% by fish of the annual Alaska Salmon
harvest. 17.6% by weight of the annual Alaska Salmon harvest.

Chums grow to be 25 to 27 inches long and most weigh from 4 to 13
pounds, although the record fish weighed 33 pounds and was slightly
more than 3 feet long.
Ocean caught or bright Chums are a dark metallic greenish-blue
becoming silver on the sides and belly Fine, pale bars may be present,
but there are no large dark spots. Semi- bright Chums begin to show
darker bars on the sides and the skin on the back begins to dull.
Bark Chums have well developed dark bars on the sides which have
become a deep red The bars on the male are vertical and may extend
from the belly to the back, while the female may have a single broad
stripe running horizontally from the gill plate to the tail
Chum Salmon are characterized by their firm, pink flesh of
moderate fat content Chums are sold canned and smoked as well as
fresh and frozen. The smaller fish may be marketed whole while larger
Chums are sold as steaks and fillets.

If you have any questions about Alaska seafood write to ASMI at:
alaska_seafood%commerce@state.ak.us