Pink salmon (Oncorhynchus gorbuscha)

Scientific name: Oncorhynchus gorbuscha Walbaum, 1792

The Pink salmon (Oncorhynchus gorbuscha) is a freshwater fish of the family Salmonidae. In the aquarium it needs water at 21°C (70°F).

Pink salmon care at a glance

Temperature: 21°C (70°F)

Biology

An anadromous species which inhabits ocean and coastal streams. Epipelagic. Pelagic at the sea. In freshwater, lives in montane and piedmont rivers with moderate to fast current and gravel bottom. Spawns in riffles or at head of riffles in shallow water with current up to 1.5 m/s, and clean coarse gravel. Spends 18 months at sea after which spawning migration to the natal river or stream occurs; but because the species is less certain of its homing and there is a certain degree of wandering, streams as much as 640 km from natal streams may be used. Upon emerging from the gravel, fry immediately move downstream and remain inshore for a few months before going out to sea. Fry may feed on nymphal and larval insects while in fresh water, but may not feed at all. In the sea, young feed on copepods and larv

Source: FishBase, licensed CC BY-NC 4.0.

Species facts

Scientific name: Oncorhynchus gorbuscha
Family: Salmonidae (Salmonids)
Order: Salmoniformes (Salmons)
Class: Actinopterygii (Ray-finned fishes)
Maximum length: 76.0
Common length: 50.5
Depth range: 0–250 m (0–820 ft)
Environment: Marine; freshwater; brackish; demersal; anadromous; depth range 0 - 250 m
Climate: Subtropical
Distribution: Arctic and Pacific drainages from Mackenzie River delta, Northwest Territories, Canada to Sacramento River drainage, in California, USA; occasionally as far as La Jolla, southern California; also in northeast Asia. On Asia side, from North Korea to Jana and Lena drainages in Artic Russia. In Bering Sea north of about 40?N and from Bering Strait northeast to Point Barrow and northwest to Lena estuary. Introduced elsewhere. Occasionally hybridizes with Oncorhynchus keta producing fertile offspring.
Conservation status (IUCN): Not Evaluated
Threat to humans: Harmless
Uses: Fisheries: highly commercial; aquaculture: commercial; gamefish: yes
Resilience: Medium, minimum population doubling time 1.4 - 4.4 years (tm=2; tmax=3; Fec=800)

Sources

Taxonomy, distribution and biology data: FishBase (Froese, R. and D. Pauly, eds.), licensed CC BY-NC 4.0.

Last updated 27 September 2026