Share your fish photos!

Click on over to our Photo Submission page to upload your favourite fishing memories.

> MORE

Chum

Also known as: dog salmon

Average size: 8-12 pounds, with a big fish weighing in the twenties

Marine Phase


What they look like:
Chum salmon are often mistaken for sockeye and vice versa. Although clearly different in the river, you have to look closely at chum and sockeye to distinguish them from one another once in saltwater. A white tip on the anal fin usually identifies a chum salmon. The tail has a narrow base and silver streaks. Spawning chums have reddish purple streaks and large pale blotches on a paler background. There can be a greenish tinge on their backs. Males have large, hooked jaws with big "canine" teeth.

Spawning Phase


Where they live:

Chum fry migrate to the sea soon after they emerge from the gravel. They spend from four to seven years at sea.

For more detailed information, visit:

Fisheries and Oceans Canada
Sport Fishing Institute of B.C