White Springs-where do they come from?

[saltydawg]

The White Springs we catch off Sooke come from the Columbia River in Washington State don't they??

Last year I took a big one to a BQ in Whiterock. Fed a gang but everyone there commented how white/grey the flesh looked. Made me feel bad. They were expecting pink/red flesh.
When I was in Seattle,
Pikes Place market the White Springs were called "silver kings" I think and were the most expensive. A Boutique salmon they called it?
They taste the same. Seems to be alot of them this year. I'm wondering where they come from?

 

[knucklebuster]

there is a run of them goes up the fraser to the Harrison.We also get them in the Vedder,after the reds go through. We used to catch a lot of them in Active Pass. also, some were marbled.
They are moister than the reds and I actually like the taste better.
Its the old thing about red meat same as beef. People think thats the color it should be. It smokes up real nice.You really notice the oil in them when you smoke them.

 

[Deewar25]

Just relates to their diet (just learned this)....think it's a strict krill diet that makes the meat white....vs shrimp/herring diet making the meat pink.


It's something along that lines anyway

 

[Mongoose]

that makes sence, but i think they are deep salmon, because if you go down deep the creatures you see are mostly white. but their diet makes more sence.

 

[alley cat]

As Deewar said the diet is the main predicator of the flesh colour , it is to do with the crustaceans and krill composition and the relation of the amino acids in their make up .


AL

 

[Rob Warren]

I prefer the white springs to the red for BBQ'n. They seem to have a little higher oil content and I personally think they taste better.

 

[Pablo2079]

I believe there is also a run in the Squamish system.

I've also read that they are primarily from rivers that have a high glacial run off percentage. The diet makes more sense to me, but I suppose the genetic make up would have something to do with it as they do seem to be restricted to specific rivers.

They do command a higher price on the market, but I have had the negative comments at BBQs as well.

 

[Roadrunner]

In most fish diet is the reason for the variation in flesh colour. In Chinook Salmon it is genetic. The allele for sequestering carotenoids is not present.

 

[salmonkiller01]

I read that white springs are from mainland rivers and red are from vancouver island rivers,something to do with genes. But the diet make more sense.

 

[Rob Warren]

I catch them off Nanaimo quite often. One of them had a tag in its head so I sent it in, turns out it was from the USA, from a large hatchery in Puget Sound. It would seem that they are enhancing the numbers through Hatcheries. Has anyone else noticed that they are catching more or less white ones then say 10-15 years ago? I think I am catching more white ones then I did before. It may be coincidental though, but I wonder if it is a trend?

 

[saltybeaver]

I have cought them around polier this year .

 

[ratherbefishing]

It is genetics. Some stocks have more dominant white vs red as in the Harrison stock which is white dominant (year after year)...

White Chinook from the Harrison will not be eating different food than the reds from the Vedder or Chehalis...this is what makes managing stocks difficult...they mix in the ocean so the food source is shared amongst many stocks...not specific ones.

 

[Pablo2079]

Roadrunner -

If this is correct:
"In most fish diet is the reason for the variation in flesh colour. In Chinook Salmon it is genetic. The allele for sequestering carotenoids is not present."

Then how does that explain the marbled ones? I alwasy assumed it was a cross, but wouldn't your explanation above be an all or nothing deal?

Thanks....

 

[Roadrunner]

I am not sure how well studied the marbled fish are as they are relatively rare. The allele could be present in some tissue types. Gene expression is hard to explain at times. I will see if I can dig something up as I am interested.

 

[ratherbefishing]

Think of it this way...you never see just blond or just red haired people. Sure you see both colours but there are also variations of colour found in between the two. The colour of flesh is, at it simplest, no different.

 

[Kildonan]

So if the whites eat mostly krill and shrimp, why is it I catch then in Sooke on Anchovy? Also, when I clean them, I check the stomach contents, I see herring, needle fish etc., just like the red ones. I'm thinking it's a genetic thing and some streams produce them more than others.

 

[KoneZone]

Most of the White Kings we catch on the Columbia are pretty far gone by the time they get here. Oh Yeah I am from Oregon. The Big Kings with the white meat we call Tule's pronounced Too-Lee. These typically get huge and you can always tell if you have caught one by the 15 pounds of snot they leave in your net. This is generally when they are really red on the sides. Sometimes they are harder to identify though, such as a Chromer that cuts White. These fish are ok to Smoke up and give away to freinds that dont fish. Good luck and don't forget the KoneZone's[8D]

 

[yammy5]

KoneZone....WHy don't you let them go!? Sorry, but sometimes I get aggravated hearing stories about fish getting bonked yet are unappreciated after they make it all the way back to the river. We need those big guys to spawn.

 

[battaglino]

I have caught a number of the white and marbled kings over the last 6 or 7 years but it seem like they are the larger fish. ALl of the 30lb I have caught on the outside of VI seem to be white or marbled. Does anyone ever catch white or marbled in the alberni inlet?
A freind of mine who in a marine fisheries biologist and I have had this discussion for years and have never been able to figure out the marbled fish maybe someone could finaly answer it.

 

[Deewar25]

kildo...i don't know, but all I know is that is what a nature guide said in goldstream park....that's got to be worth something! Diet, not genetics!