An Atlantic salmon in profile.

Atlantic salmon (*Salmo salar*).

Creator: Timothy Knepp

Licence: Public domain

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Species record

Atlantic Salmon

Salmo salar

Explore the Atlantic Salmon (Salmo salar) species record in The Ark Is Earth, including classification, habitat, distribution, conservation information, and sources.

Summary

The Atlantic Salmon is an anadromous fish native to rivers and coastal seas of Europe and North America. It hatches in freshwater, grows mainly at sea, and many adults return to their natal rivers to spawn. Salmon carries marine nutrients into freshwater food webs and supports fisheries, while dams, habitat degradation, and other pressures imperil many populations.

Classification in this archive

  1. Kingdom: Animals
  2. Phylum: Chordates
  3. Subphylum: Vertebrates
  4. Class: Actinopterygii
  5. Order: Salmoniformes
  6. Family: Salmonidae
  7. Genus: Salmo
  8. Species: Salmo salar

Habitat and distribution

Selected documented locations — not a complete species range.

Habitat
rivers, coastal ocean
Selected regions
Europe, North America

Conservation status

The Ark records: Near Threatened.

Did you know?

  • Many Atlantic salmon hatch in freshwater, spend part of their lives at sea, and return to rivers to spawn.
  • Salmon can carry nutrients from the ocean into freshwater food webs when they return upstream.

More images

An adult Atlantic salmon (*Salmo salar*) shown in side view.

Atlantic salmon (*Salmo salar*) in side view.

Creator: Fyn Kynd

Licence: CC BY-SA 4.0

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Sources and attribution