Definitions for: Salmon


[n] any of various large food and game fishes of northern waters; usually migrate from salt to fresh water to spawn
[n] flesh of any of various marine or freshwater fish of the family Salmonidae
[n] a tributary of the Snake River



Webster (1913) Definition: Salm"on (s[a^]m"[u^]n), n.; pl. Salmons (-[u^]nz) or
(collectively) Salmon. [OE. saumoun, salmon, F. saumon, fr.
L. salmo, salmonis, perhaps from salire to leap. Cf. Sally,
v.]
1. (Zo["o]l.) Any one of several species of fishes of the
genus Salmo and allied genera. The common salmon ({Salmo
salar}) of Northern Europe and Eastern North America, and
the California salmon, or quinnat, are the most important
species. They are extensively preserved for food. See
Quinnat.



Note: The salmons ascend rivers and penetrate to their head
streams to spawn. They are remarkably strong fishes,
and will even leap over considerable falls which lie in
the way of their progress. The common salmon has been
known to grow to the weight of seventy-five pounds;
more generally it is from fifteen to twenty-five
pounds. Young salmon are called parr, peal, smolt, and
grilse. Among the true salmons are:

Black salmon, or Lake salmon, the namaycush.

Dog salmon, a salmon of Western North America
(Oncorhynchus keta).

Humpbacked salmon, a Pacific-coast salmon ({Oncorhynchus
gorbuscha}).

King salmon, the quinnat.

Landlocked salmon, a variety of the common salmon (var.
Sebago), long confined in certain lakes in consequence
of obstructions that prevented it from returning to the
sea. This last is called also dwarf salmon.

Note: Among fishes of other families which are locally and
erroneously called salmon are: the pike perch, called
jack salmon; the spotted, or southern, squeteague;
the cabrilla, called kelp salmon; young pollock,
called sea salmon; and the California yellowtail.

2. A reddish yellow or orange color, like the flesh of the
salmon.

Salmon berry (Bot.), a large red raspberry growing from
Alaska to California, the fruit of the Rubus Nutkanus.


Salmon killer (Zo["o]l.), a stickleback ({Gasterosteus
cataphractus}) of Western North America and Northern Asia.


Salmon ladder, Salmon stair. See Fish ladder, under
Fish.

Salmon peel, a young salmon.

Salmon pipe, a certain device for catching salmon. --Crabb.

Salmon trout. (Zo["o]l.)
(a) The European sea trout (Salmo trutta). It resembles
the salmon, but is smaller, and has smaller and more
numerous scales.
(b) The American namaycush.
(c) A name that is also applied locally to the adult black
spotted trout (Salmo purpuratus), and to the steel
head and other large trout of the Pacific coast.


Salm"on, a.
Of a reddish yellow or orange color, like that of the flesh
of the salmon.

Synonyms: Salmon River

See Also: America, Atlantic salmon, Atlantic salmon, blackfish, blue jack, blueback salmon, chinook, chinook, chinook salmon, chinook salmon, coho, coho, coho salmon, coho salmon, cohoe, cohoe, family Salmonidae, fish, food fish, king salmon, king salmon, kippered salmon, Onchorynchus kisutch, Onchorynchus nerka, Onchorynchus tshawtscha, quinnat salmon, red salmon, red salmon, redfish, river, Salmo salar, salmon, salmon, salmonid, Salmonidae, silver salmon, silver salmon, smoked salmon, sockeye, sockeye, sockeye salmon, sockeye salmon, U.S., U.S.A., United States, United States of America, US, USA

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