Wildlife on the Brink: Atlantic Salmon

SCIENTIFIC NAME: Salmo salar

STATUS: Endangered

HABITAT: Free-flowing, gravel-bedded rivers that remain cool in summer

LIFE HISTORY: Juveniles spend up to three years in freshwater before heading to ocean. Averages three feet in length after three years at sea

THREATS: Loss of spawning habitat due to dams; water pollution; overfishing

FORMER RANGE: New Brunswick south to Connecticut

CURRENT POPULATION: Runs limited to eight rivers in Maine

Atlantic salmon are world travelers, spending much of their lives at sea, but returning to freshwater streams to spawn. These powerful fish have been known to leap up to 10 feet in the air to move past obstructions as they migrate upstream to the waters of their birth.

This salmon's breeding grounds once ranged from Connecticut's Housatonic River to New Brunswick, Canada, but now North American salmon runs are limited to just a few rivers in Maine. Hydropower dams were a major cause of the salmon's decline, and today, pollution, global warming and overfishing continue to threaten the survival of this iconic fish.

The Atlantic salmon was listed as an endangered species in 2000. Thanks to that listing, the federal government is mapping the distribution of remaining salmon populations and assisting local communities who are working to restore salmon habitat. To date, more than 84 river miles have been permanently protected due to these efforts.

Photo: Atlantic salmon © William W. Hartley, USFWS