Field Identification of Coastal Juvenile Salmonids [Paperback]

W.R. Pollard (Author), G.F. Hartman (Author), C. Groot (Author, Illustrator), Phil Edgell (Author, Photographer)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 1997

Correctly identifying young salmonids improves the accuracy of resource management information, leading to a fuller knowledge of the distribution and status of fish stocks. Until now, identifying coastal salmonids during their fry to smolt life stages in freshwater and saltwater estuaries of the Pacific Northwest has been difficult due to the lack of comprehensive, practical information. This guide was written and compiled by top fisheries biologists from government and industry who wanted to make available a simple, easy-to-use system for identifying 10 of the most common species of juvenile salmon, trout and char in the field. The guide uses high-quality photos, colour illustrations and detailed drawings to show distinguishing physical features for each species. A fish viewing bag provided with the guide helps identify most fish in the field, and an easy-to-follow chart facilitates identification of the three major groupings and individual species. Habitat use information and maps help to determine where and when various species may be found for sampling.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Phil Edgell has worked as a fish culturist with Fisheries and Oceans Canada at the Robertson Creek Hatchery on Vancouver Island. His prize-winning underwater photographs have appeared in many publications including Pacific Diver, Western Angling, and Nature Canada.

Phil Edgell has worked as a fish culturist with Fisheries and Oceans Canada at the Robertson Creek Hatchery on Vancouver Island. His prize-winning underwater photographs have appeared in many publications including Pacific Diver, Western Angling, and Nature Canada.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Correct identification of young salmonids will improve the accuracy of resource management information and lead to a fuller knowledge of the distribution and status of fish stocks. This guidebook will help you to identify young salmonids in the field. Fish identification requires practice, but learning to identify young salmonids can be an enjoyable and worthwhile endeavour.

Scope
Information is provided for 10 species of juvenile salmonids found in coastal BC watersheds. Regional differences occur in the appearance of fish, and their physical features may change as they grow. The range of characteristics is vast; this guide is limited to the freshwater rearing stages.

We have chosen to exclude brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) from this guide to avoid confusion with the widely distributed Dolly Varden (Salvelinus malma), and due to the fact that brook trout are known to be present in so few areas on the BC coast. Other field guides should be consulted when sampling in a location known to have brook trout.

Interior regions of BC have salmonid species or races that are not found in coastal waters. You should exercise caution when using this guide for interior waters or species.

Taxonomy of BC Salmonids
Salmon (Oncorhynchus), trout (Salmo) and char (Salvelinus) are the three genera of the family Salmonidae found in coastal BC fresh waters. The scientific and common names of BC coastal salmonids are:

Pink salmon (Oncorhynchus gorbuscha)
Chum salmon (O. keta)
Sockeye salmon (O. nerka)
Chinook salmon (O. tshawytscha)
Coho salmon (O. kisutch)
Cutthroat trout (O. darki)
Steelhead/rainbow trout (O. mykiss)

Brown trout (Salmo trutta)
Atlantic salmon (S. salary)

Dolly Varden (Salvelinus malma)
Bull trout (S. confluentus)
Brook trout (S. fontinalis)

Common names are often not consistent with the scientific names. The Atlantic salmon (Salmo salary is a trout. Cutthroat and rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus clarki and O. mykiss) have recently been placed in the salmon genus. Bull trout (Salvelinus confluentus) are char. We have adopted the common names used by McPhail and Carveth (1994).

Coastal BC fresh waters have relatively few native species and the fish most often encountered are salmonids. However, considerable biological diversity occurs within each species. These physical and behavioural differences in salmonids promote survival in the large variety of BC's coastal environments. For example, a resident rainbow trout in a small headwater reach of a stream may spend its entire life near where it emerged from the gravel and never grow larger than 15 cm. The anadromous form of rainbow trout (steelhead) will rear in fresh water for up to several years and then migrate up to several thousand kilometres at sea, where it can grow to more than 1 m and 10 kg before returning as an adult. Both forms are rainbow trout but their life histories are very different.

Identification Procedures
Users of this guide will find several pathways to identify juvenile salmonids. They include identification charts, colour and black and white illustrations, colour photos of live fish, and distribution information.

The Identification Charts can be used to determine whether fish are ,salmon, trout or char and the individual species. To confirm identification, the drawings and information in the Detailed Species Information pages provide summaries of physical features and distribution. The generalized distribution information is useful in determining when and where in watersheds the user can expect to find the various species. The photos show examples of how the features are expressed on live fish.

Pairs of species with similar physical characteristics (rainbow/ cutthroat, coho/ chinook, chum/ sockeye) are positioned next to each other to facilitate correct identification.

Few fish can survive being held out of water while the guidebook user goes through the identification steps. Please use the fish viewing bag provided with the guidebook to keep fish alive while identifying them. Do not overload the bag and change the water regularly to keep your specimens healthy. Careful handling will allow you to identify most fish without harming them. We recommend that you use a 10x magnifying glass to see some of the features on small fish. (Introduction )

Product Details

• Paperback: 32 pages
• Publisher: Harbour; 1 edition (January 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1550171674
• ISBN-13: 978-1550171679
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.5 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.7 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,045,029 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best field guide I have seen for Pacific salmonids., November 8, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Field Identification of Coastal Juvenile Salmonids (Paperback)

The plastic bag viewing chamber is a great addition for the identification of juvenile salmonids. The illustrations are very understandable and the photography is very good, with standardized backgrounds a real plus. This manual will be very useful for our salmon and steelhead restoration project for making sure those involved will have a resource for checking the identification of salmonids that is of the highest quality.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Field Identification of Coastal Juvenile Salmonids, February 19, 2000

By 

Doug Molyneaux (Alaska) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Field Identification of Coastal Juvenile Salmonids (Paperback)

This booklet is an excellent resource for educators (elementary through college, families, and resource management/research groups) with need for a practical and easy to use guide to identify juvenile salmonids in the Pacific Northwest and Alaska. The 32 page soft covered booklet is easily slipped into a daypack or coat pocket. The guide is printed on water resistant paper that will not fall apart even if it accompanies the user on an unexpected icy cold plunge into the stream. Mud and slime wipe clean from the pages with a moist cloth.

The content of the book is excellent. Included are color illustrations and photographs of all the species described, including Atlantic salmon which are more and more often finding their way into Pacific Northwest streams. Also included are pen and ink drawings that help the user identify key diagnostic feature. Having the three views of each species is very helpful in arriving at a correct identification.

In addition to information pertinent to any basic taxonomic key, the guide includes helpful clues about habitat usage, behavior and life history that direct users to the best locations for finding each species. This booklet accompanies all my crews when they take to the streams for salmon management and research activities.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars This is a great field guide, but this copy is not as described in the description, July 31, 2010

By 

Becca A. Yucha "TroutScout" (Sequim, WA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Field Identification of Coastal Juvenile Salmonids (Paperback)

I have an old copy of this book (original 1997 printing) that is waterproof and included a waterproof fish-viewing bag. This new copy (3rd printing) I just ordered from Amazon is written on glossy non-waterproof paper and doesn't include the fish viewing bag. I never would have ordered this copy if I knew it wasn't waterproof as I intend to take it into the field. Anyway, this is going back to Amazon and I'm going to look for an original waterproof copy.