Interspecies Romance

[hwchubb]

I was taking a walk behind the hatchery yesterday and noticed a first, for me at least. Along with two salmon bucks, there was a steelhead that was clearly trying to spawn with a salmon hen on one of the redds. It was a steelie, not a salmon (after 30 years of chasing steel, I can tell them apart) and it was taking up a spawning position, not poaching eggs. Anyone else noticed this, or are American steeliies just hornier and more delusional than most? I mean, that describes several of my steel heading buddies, not usually the fish. Just wondering.

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

I guess all kinds of fish will be around where the salmon are spawning to get some eggs that drift out of the nest?

They say that small jack salmon will actually help out the large adult fish during spawning to insure the survival of the species.

[hwchubb]

Actually, Bill, this one wasn't eating eggs, but actually lining up to spawn with the hen. I'm sure it wouldn't work, or we'd be catching steelmon (or the fish farm folks would have invented one). Maybe that's where Hank Patterson's brown bow comes from...

[TonyMuljat]

I was taking a walk behind the hatchery yesterday and noticed a first, for me at least. Along with two salmon bucks, there was a steelhead that was clearly trying to spawn with a salmon hen on one of the redds. It was a steelie, not a salmon (after 30 years of chasing steel, I can tell them apart) and it was taking up a spawning position, not poaching eggs. Anyone else noticed this, or are American steeliies just hornier and more delusional than most? I mean, that describes several of my steel heading buddies, not usually the fish. Just wondering.

I've never seen that, but I have had a steelhead try to hump my leg.

[SeanO]

Pretty cool observation. I have not seen that either, but maybe the steelie was "practicing"?

Best,

ps., Bill, just to expand on your jack comments. Jacks are pretty cool when thought of in regards to exchanging genetic info BETWEEN run years. Without jacks, run years would be insulated from each other and would develop/evolve differently. Since jacks come back earlier than their brood mates, they disperse the genes from an earlier run year with the current "adults". Over time, this ensures that the species as a whole is more stable to changes in the environment.

Best,

I was taking a walk behind the hatchery yesterday and noticed a first, for me at least. Along with two salmon bucks, there was a steelhead that was clearly trying to spawn with a salmon hen on one of the redds. It was a steelie, not a salmon (after 30 years of chasing steel, I can tell them apart) and it was taking up a spawning position, not poaching eggs. Anyone else noticed this, or are American steeliies just hornier and more delusional than most? I mean, that describes several of my steel heading buddies, not usually the fish. Just wondering.