Alaska's Wild Salmon
Text by Liz McKenzie and Photos by Richard Nelson
Alaska's Wild Salmon
To listen to the salmon's world, move cursor over slide, and click on the play arrow.
The Miraculous Nature of Salmon
Through herculean feats of navigation, strength and determination, salmon return to the place of their birth for the spawning ritual…to give life and then die—a story that’s been repeating itself since long before humans appeared on the earth
Forest and Sea: The Salmon Connection
Salmon help to create the forest. And the forest helps to create salmon—a brilliant and beautiful cycle that has continued for literally millions of years.
Salmon and People
Salmon nourish our bodies, enrich our cultural traditions, and sustain our economies. Simply put, from a human standpoint, salmon are the single most important wild animal in the world.
Cautionary Tales: Why the Past Matters
In the Pacific Northwest, examples abound of what overfishing and destruction or alteration of habitat have done to salmon. There are also examples of heroic efforts to restore salmon runs.
The Future of Alaska's Wild Salmon
In Alaska today, most populations are still healthy, but there are challenges ahead as decisions made in the near future about development of dams and large-scale mining could threaten important salmon runs.
Videos: The Salmon Series
Encounters host Richard Nelson describes the miraculous lives of salmon and their connections to the land, the rivers, and the sea.
This project was partially funded by NOAA Pacific Coastal Salmon Recovery Funds administered by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, Alaska Sustainable Salmon Fund.