# 7 The Pacific Salmon

Salmon are born in fresh water. But they spend their entire adult life in the salty sea. At sea, a salmon feeds on small creatures. These are a kind of tiny shrimp. The shrimp are called "pink feed." This feed probably gives color to the pink meat of a salmon.

The sea is filled with food. But it is filled with enemies too. Some of these are seals, sharks, and sea bass. Salmon make a tasty meal, so they're not safe anywhere. Down deep, the lamprey eels dwell. They gobble up many salmon. There's no safety at the surface either. Sea birds swoop down. They carry many salmon away.

All salmon are not alike. There are four main ones. One is the chinook. A big one weighs 100 or more pounds. A fish like this would snap your rod. Second, there's the sockeye. It weighs about five pounds. Its flesh is deep red. This is the most important commercial salmon. It yields the highest dollar value. Pink salmon are the smallest. They weigh about three to seven pounds. Most pinks are canned. They have a delicate flavor. Fourth is the coho. Its flesh is medium red. It weighs about nine pounds. Some that stay out at sea longer weigh more. They can be 25 pounds.

Salmon travel far. They may go thousands of miles. Most travel for three years. They were born in the headwaters of some stream. They were five inches long then. That's when they first poked their noses into the sea. But they have swum far away from their place of birth.

Now, here's the big mystery. The salmon turn back. Why do they do this? Some call it the "homing instinct." The salmon move back toward the fresh water in which their life began.

# 7 太平洋鮭魚

鮭魚出生在淡水中。但牠們的整個成年生活都在鹹水海中度過。在海上，鮭魚以小型生物為食。這些是一種微小的蝦子。這些蝦被稱為「粉紅飼料」。這種飼料可能賦予了鮭魚粉紅色肉質其顏色。

海洋充滿了食物。但也充滿了敵人。其中一些是海豹、鯊魚和海鱸。鮭魚構成了美味的餐點，所以牠們在任何地方都不安全。在深處，居住著七鰓鰻。牠們吞食許多鮭魚。在水面也不安全。海鳥俯衝而下。牠們帶走了許多鮭魚。

並非所有鮭魚都一樣。主要有四種。第一種是奇努克鮭。大的可重達100磅或更多。這樣的魚會折斷你的釣竿。第二種是紅鮭。牠重約五磅。肉質深紅色。這是最重要的商業鮭魚。它產生的美元價值最高。粉紅鮭是最小的。牠們重約三到七磅。大多數粉紅鮭被製成罐頭。牠們風味細膩。第四種是銀鮭。肉質中等紅色。重約九磅。有些在海上停留更久的體重更重。可達25磅。

鮭魚旅行很遠。牠們可能游數千英里。大多數旅行三年。牠們出生在某條溪流的源頭。那時牠們只有五英寸長。那是牠們首次將鼻子探入海中的時候。但牠們已經游離出生地很遠了。

現在，最大的謎團來了。鮭魚會返回。牠們為什麼這樣做？有些人稱之為「歸巢本能」。鮭魚游回牠們生命開始的淡水水域。