Do any of the Great Lakes have salmon?

Anglers on the Great Lakes have the opportunity to catch a variety of species - including many different salmon and trout. Often times these species can look very similar to one another. This document provides some tips for identifying the most commonly caught Great Lakes trout and salmon species.



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Some species of salmon were introduced to the Great Lakes in the late 19th and early 20th centuries for sport and commercial fishing, but these populations have not been established and are not self-sustaining.

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White-fleshed king salmon don't have the genetic ability to break down their food and store the red-orange carotene in their muscle cells. The marbled flesh color sometimes found in king salmon comes from their limited ability to metabolize carotene, causing the flesh to take on a marbled look.

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Atlantic Salmon can have a boggy taste due to spending time in brackish water to adjust from salt to fresh water. Sea run coho will lose fat so the meat becomes drier. Pink Salmon meat changes quickly. Saltwater coho caught in a river still will be richer in taste compared to a Great Lake coho caught in the lake.

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