Can Atlantic salmon mate with Pacific salmon?
No, Atlantic salmon (farmed or wild) cannot mate successfully with wild Pacific salmon. DFO’s Atlantic Salmon Watch Program suggests that there have been cases of escaped farmed Atlantic salmon surviving and then breeding with other escaped Atlantic salmon in BC streams. However, there is no evidence of established Atlantic salmon populations. Throughout the 20th century, even before commercial aquaculture was established in the Pacific Northwest, millions of juvenile Atlantic salmon were released along the west coast of the United States and Canada in an attempt to establish recreational and commercial fisheries. These attempts were not successful.
No, Atlantic salmon (farmed or wild) cannot mate successfully with wild Pacific salmon. DFOs Atlantic Salmon Watch Program suggests that there have been cases of escaped farmed Atlantic salmon surviving and then breeding with other escaped Atlantic salmon in BC streams. However, there is no evidence of established Atlantic salmon populations. Throughout the 20th century, even before commercial aquaculture was established in the Pacific Northwest, millions of juvenile Atlantic salmon were released along the west coast of the United States and Canada in an attempt to establish recreational and commercial fisheries. These attempts were not successful.
