Oncorhynchus in the context of "Secondary sexual characteristic"

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⭐ Core Definition: Oncorhynchus

Oncorhynchus, from Ancient Greek ὄγκος (ónkos), meaning "bend", and ῥύγχος (rhúnkhos), meaning "snout", is a genus of ray-finned fish in the subfamily Salmoninae of the family Salmonidae, native to coldwater tributaries of the North Pacific basin. The genus contains sixteen extant species, namely six species of Pacific salmon and ten species of Pacific trout, all of which are migratory (either anadromous or potamodromous) mid-level predatory fish that display natal homing and semelparity.

The name of the genus is derived from Ancient Greek ὄγκος (ónkos), meaning "bend", and ῥύγχος (rhúnkhos), meaning "snout", in reference to the hooked secondary sexual characteristic — known as the kype — that the males develop on the lower jaw tip during mating season.

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Oncorhynchus in the context of Salmon

Salmon (/ˈsæmən/; pl.: salmon) are any of several commercially important species of euryhaline ray-finned fish from the genera Salmo and Oncorhynchus of the family Salmonidae, native to tributaries of the North Atlantic (Salmo) and North Pacific (Oncorhynchus) basins. Salmon is a colloquial or common name used for fish in this group, but is not a scientific name. Other closely related fish in the same family include trout, char, grayling, whitefish, lenok and taimen, all coldwater fish of the subarctic and cooler temperate regions with some sporadic endorheic populations in Central Asia.

Salmon are typically anadromous: they hatch in the shallow gravel beds of freshwater headstreams and spend their juvenile years in rivers, lakes and freshwater wetlands, migrate to the ocean as adults and live like sea fish, then return to their freshwater birthplace to reproduce. However, populations of several species are restricted to fresh waters (i.e. landlocked) throughout their lives. Folklore has it that the fish return to the exact stream where they themselves hatched to spawn, and tracking studies have shown this to be mostly true. A portion of a returning salmon run may stray and spawn in different freshwater systems; the percent of straying depends on the species of salmon. Homing behavior has been shown to depend on olfactory memory.

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Oncorhynchus in the context of Trout

Trout (pl.: trout) is a generic common name for numerous species of carnivorous freshwater fishes belonging to the genera Oncorhynchus, Salmo, and Salvelinus, all of which are members of the subfamily Salmoninae in the family Salmonidae. The word trout is also used for some similar-shaped but non-salmonid fish, such as the spotted seatrout/speckled trout (Cynoscion nebulosus, which is actually a croaker).

Trout are closely related to salmon and have similar migratory life cycles. Most trout are strictly potamodromous, spending their entire lives exclusively in freshwater lakes, rivers and wetlands and migrating upstream to spawn in the shallow gravel beds of smaller headwater creeks. The hatched fry and juvenile trout, known as alevin and parr, will stay upstream growing for years before migrating down to larger waterbodies as maturing adults. There are some anadromous species of trout, such as the steelhead (a coastal subspecies of rainbow trout) and sea trout (the sea-run subspecies of brown trout), that can spend up to three years of their adult lives at sea before returning to freshwater streams for spawning, in the same fashion as a salmon run. Brook trout and three other extant species of North American trout, despite the names, are actually char (or charr), which are salmonids also closely related to trout and salmon.

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Oncorhynchus in the context of Salmon run

A salmon run is an annual fish migration event where many salmonid species, which are typically hatched in fresh water and live most of their adult life downstream in the ocean, swim back against the stream to the upper reaches of rivers to spawn on the gravel beds of small creeks. After spawning, most Atlantic salmon and all species of Pacific salmon die, and the salmon life cycle starts over again with the new generation of hatchlings.

Salmon are anadromous, spending their juvenile life in rivers or lakes, and then migrating out to sea where they spend adult lives and gain most of their body mass. When they reach sexual maturity, the adults return to the upstream rivers to reproduce. Usually they return with uncanny precision to the natal river where they were born, and even to the very spawning ground of their birth. It is thought that, when they are in the ocean, they use magnetoreception to locate the general position of their natal river, and once close to the river, that they use their sense of smell to home in on the river entrance and even their natal spawning ground.

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Oncorhynchus in the context of Chinook salmon

The Chinook salmon /ʃɪˈnʊk/ (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) is the largest and most valuable species of Pacific salmon. Its common name is derived from the Chinookan peoples. Other vernacular names for the species include king salmon, quinnat salmon, tsumen, spring salmon, blackmouth, and tyee salmon. The scientific species name is based on the Russian common name chavycha (чавыча).

Chinook are anadromous fish native to the North Pacific Ocean and the river systems of western North America, ranging from California to Alaska, as well as Asian rivers ranging from northern Japan to the Palyavaam River in Arctic northeast Siberia. They have been introduced to other parts of the world, including New Zealand and Patagonia. Introduced Chinook salmon are thriving in Lake Michigan and Michigan's western rivers. A large Chinook is a prized and sought-after catch for a sporting angler. The flesh of the salmon is also highly valued for its dietary nutritional content, which includes high levels of important omega-3 fatty acids. Some populations are endangered; however, many are healthy. The Chinook salmon has not been assessed for the IUCN Red List. According to NOAA, the Chinook salmon population along the California coast is declining from factors such as overfishing, loss of freshwater and estuarine habitat, hydropower development, poor ocean conditions, and hatchery practices.

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Oncorhynchus in the context of Eu-

This is a list of common affixes used when scientifically naming species, particularly extinct species for whom only their scientific names are used, along with their derivations.

  • -ales: Pronunciation: /ˈa.lis/. Origin: Latin: -ālis. Meaning: Used to form taxonomic names of orders for plants and fungi.
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LINKED FROM (PARENTS)
← Salmon ← Trout ← Salmon run ← Chinook salmon ← Eu-
LINKS TO (CHILDREN)
Ancient Greek → Genus → Ray-finned fish → Subfamily → Salmoninae → Family (biology) → Salmonidae → Tributaries → North Pacific → Extant taxon → Species → Fish migration → Anadromous → Potamodromous → Trophic level → Predatory fish → Natal homing → Semelparity → Secondary sexual characteristic → Kype → Lower jaw →