Scientific Name: Oncorhynchus tshawytscha comes from the Greek words onkos (hook), rynchos (nose) Male and tshawytscha (the common name for the species in Siberia and Alaska).

Common Names: King Salmon, tyee salmon, Columbia River salmon, black salmon, chub salmon, hook bill salmon, winter salmon and blackmouth. Chinooks returned to spawn are called jaks.

Family: Salmonidae (Salmon)

Description: The Chinook or the king salmon it is characterized by its size. It can grow up to 100 pounds and five feet long. That's why it is known as one of the favorites of  sport fisherman.  The Chinook is the bigger in size and lives longer (7-8 years) than any other Pacific Salmon. The king salmon is blue-green on the back and on top of the head with silvery sides and white belly. It has black spots on upper part of his party, gray-black mouth. The Chinook it is considered very important culturally and a fish that once supported the fish industry. The Chinook population numbers have drastically declined mostly in the Sacramento and Snake Rivers of the Pacific Northwest and Idaho.

Range: Chinook salmon range from Chukchi Sea, Alaska, to Santa Barbara, California.

Habitat Type: Being anadromous, Chinooks are spending part of their life in the ocean and part in freshwater streams, where they are born and return to spawn. During their staying in the freshwater they prefer large rivers with deep waters . Chinook Salmon tend to be more abundant in waters that are 45 to 60 F, with the peak feeding temperature being 54 F. They feed on terrestrial and aquatic insects, amphipods, and other crustaceans while young, and primarily on other fish when older.

Spawning Habits:

The Chinook  often swim long distances to spawn, back to the places where they were born. There are cases like the Yukon River, where the salmon has to migrate almost 2000 miles to spawn. The Chinook, like all Pacific salmon dies after it spawns. Their color changes anywhere to brown, to black, to red. Unlike other Pacific Salmon, Chinooks' body shape does not change. Spawning takes place at different times of the year between June and November. Females deposit between 3000 and 14000 eggs in several gravel nest in deep and flowing freshwater. When the eggs hatch the new born feed on an attached yolk sac until early spring. The exact date of when they go sea is determined by when they hatch. The Chinook hatched during fall head to sea after three or four months. The Spring Chinook might stay in the freshwater up to an year and a half.

                                                                                       Spawning Comparison

Primary Threats: The primary threats to Chinook are the destruction of habitat, dam degradation, agricultural practices, mines operations, urbanization. Also considered threats are  human and predators like sea lions, eagles, climate change and ocean conditions.

Economic Value: Chinook is highly valued by commercial industry despite its scarcity. It is also important as a subsidence fish and recreational resource.