Life Cycle Of The Atlantic Salmon

It is our duty as humans to ensure the vitality of biodiversity in the world around us, because without biodiversity we could not survive. One of the main problems seen today is the loss of biodiversity in our oceans. Pavan Sukhdev of the UN Environmental Program was quoted as saying "We are in the situation where 40 years down the line we, effectively, are out of fish." (Save our Seas, 2014) Although this quote is both powerful and grim, this is only a future we could meet if we were to continue the mass commercial fishing of stock fish. An essential cornerstone to securing biodiversity, species protection is of the utmost importance when it comes to environmental issues. In the Pacific Northwest there are few species

When rainbow trout breed the female digs a deep red which is a nest by laying on her side and flapping her tail to loosen up gravel, then she releases eggs which mix with the male’s milt (sperm) and both go into the red. Then the female fills the nest in. After the alevins (larvae) hatch they stay in the nest and absorb the sac that they were in, they now look like tadpoles but in two months they become fry which are young fish and leave the nest to feed. Rainbow trout breed around the age of two. Females can produce a maximum of 2000 eggs for every kilogram of body

Salmon are both an indicator and keystone species to the survival of ecosystems in the Pacific Northwest. A healthy salmon species implies healthy waterways with little pollution, and an abundance of native plants and animals, as well as thriving estuaries that effectively filter pollutants. Salmon are a vital food source for predators, and carry key nutrients to plants surrounding the rivers and lakes where they spawn. Along with environmental stability, a healthy salmon population contributes to a multi-million dollar industry of thousands of workers along the Pacific

Ecosystems can be impacted by many factors such as climate, natural disasters, human pollution, water shortage etc. All of these are the factors that controls an ecosystem’s stability, productivity, and sustainability because these factors can kill, drive out, intoxicate, and destroy species’ natural habitats. These factors are spontaneous and temporarily and these can impact a very specific species which in turn can cause the collapse of an entire species. These species are call the Keystone species and they are organisms that are basically the arch or the support of the food chain in an ecosystem. They are special because without them, the population will be impacted negatively, such as too much overgrazing, overpopulation, and lack of food or predators for some animals. Keystone species are important

Unlike dominant species, a species that greatly affects a community due to its large biomass or abundance, keystone species are usually not the most abundant species in a community. Even though they are present in relatively small numbers, the individuals of a keystone species profoundly influence the entire community because they often effect the amount of available resources. Therefore, although both dominant and keystone species greatly affect a community, the removal of a keystone species can cause an ecosystem to collapse due to their small numbers and

After many years in the wide ocean, the salmon make their journey back to the exact spot where they were spawned. While on their journey from the pacific ocean to the northern Alaskan streams, they have to avoid many obstacles. From strong currents, bears, bald eagles, and fishermen, the salmon have to overcome the dangers of the run to return to their spawning grounds. Once the breeding grounds are reached, the female salmon start to build a nest called a redd. Made in a riffle out of just gravel. A female salmon can make as many as 7 redd's before her supply of eggs runs out. Dominant male salmon guard the nests by chasing intruders out of their territory.

Over the past 25 years, Atlantic salmon has become one of the endangered species among the red list. The problem first occurred at Penobscot river. Initially, 75% of the whole country’s Atlantic salmon population lived there, but now, less than 5% remain. The main reason that leads to the rapid decline of Atlantic salmon to the state of extinction is due to overfishing which begins from 1950. As the decline in salmon population became evident, farming of salmon began in 1980 and fishing stopped in 1990. Furthermore, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) decided to step in and rectify this problem when they realized the seriousness of this issue. They spent 7.3 million into American Recovery and reinvestment Act (ARRA) to rebuild

The Chinook Salmon or Oncorhynchus tshawytscha is one of my chosen vertebrates, the Chinook Salmon are found natively in the Pacific Ocean, they are anadromous meaning they are born in fresh water, they move gradually move to deep salt water oceans when they are young before returning back to the fresh water streams where they hatched as fully matured adults to lay eggs and die.

A keystone species is an organism that helps define an entire ecosystem. Without a keystone species, the ecosystem will either cease to exist or dramatically change. If a keystone species were to disappear from the ecosystem, no other species would be able to fill its ecological niche. This means that keystone species have low functional redundancy. This forces an ecosystem to radically change. This may allow new invasive species to populate the habitat. Keystone species can range from plants to fungi. They are usually not the most abundant species in the ecosystem. The way these animals impact the food web varies from habitat to habitat. Keystone species are usually a predator. An example of a keystone species is the gray wolves in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (GYE). Elk, bison, rabbit, and bird population at GYE are

The replacement level, described as the ratio of returning progeny per adult spawner, was not reached and the industry was forced to close for a third consecutive year. This shut out was attributed to a wide range of factors including: environmental changes along the river and in the marine environment, as well as fisheries management practices. Incredibly, 2010 saw a profound rebound with an estimated 34 million returns, indicating resilience of this species but also giving rise to many unanswered questions in explanation (Cohen, 2010).

Sturgeon have a similar life cycle to that of pacific salmon with spawning occurring when the female sturgeon releases eggs and the male sturgeon fertilizes them. Incubation happens for a week until the eggs hatch and the new fish rely on nourishment from a yolk sac until they are further grown. The yolk sac provides complete nourishment for the small sturgeon for its first 12-14 days of life. Similar to salmon entering ocean, sturgeon fish can enter areas with higher salt content to look for food. The fish can spawn once they are mature, with the males reaching it first when they are about 12 to 18 years old. Female sturgeons can only reproduce when they are older at 25 to 30 years of age. Unlike salmon, sturgeon can reproduce several times throughout their lifetime and can reproduce every year or every several years, depending on the age of the female. http://hsbc.frasersturgeon.com/rhspsec/Lesson1/Articles/Article1.pdf

A keystone species is a plant or animal that plays a unique and crucial role in the way an ecosystem functions. Without keystone species, the ecosystem would be dramatically different or cease to exist altogether- National Geographic. A keystone species absence can cause a huge domino effect as they can affect feeding patterns and shelter. The sea otter is a good example of a keystone species. These mammals, found in the North West pacific, feed on sea urchins, controlling their population. If the otters didn't eat the urchins, the urchins would eat up the kelp. Kelp, or giant seaweed, is a major source of food and shelter for the ecosystem. Some species of crabs, snails, and geese depend on kelp for food. Many types of fish use the huge kelp forests to hide from predators. Without sea otters to control the urchin population, the entire ecosystem would collapse. Sea otters are just one almost any kind of species can be keystone species. Most plants extinction, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services, can lead to the loss of up to 30 other insect, plant, and other animal species extinction. Overall keystone species have a huge impact on every

They have a sequence of living water like the control of body fluids and ions during the transition from fresh to salt water and back again. there will be three main things that must occur when is a smolt salmon before going to the salty ocean. First of all, it must start drinking a lot of water because usually fish that live in freshwater do not drink too much water as they take in the water through their gills and skin. On the other hand, saltwater fish do actively drink sea water as their gills process the water and take out the salt. Second of all, their kidneys have to drop their urine production as it is collected by ducts near the vent.

A keystone species is a species that has a disproportionate effect on its environment relative to its abundance. Such an organism plays a role in its ecosystem that is analogous to the role of a keystone in an arch. While the keystone feels the least pressure of any of the stones in an arch, the arch still collapses without it. Similarly, an ecosystem may experience a dramatic shift if a keystone species is removed, even though that species was a small part of the ecosystem by measures of biomass or productivity. It has become a very popular concept in conservation biology.

A keystone predator is very important to the health and overall wellbeing of an ecosystem. It ensures the ability for all organisms to have space to grow and thrive. It keeps other organisms in check, so that they don’t go over their carrying capacity and end up driving themselves into extinction. This was largely seen in Yellowstone when wolves were removed from the ecosystem allowing deer to destroy the environment. However, this is just one of a few keystone species. One of the most well-known is the Starfish.