Tuesday May 12, 2026
UVIC —
A new study by University of Victoria (UVic) and Pacific Salmon Foundation (PSF) scientists has uncovered what adult Chinook salmon in the Salish Sea are eating—and revealed diet can differ according to region.
The study, led by UVic PhD student Wesley Greentree and published recently in Fisheries Oceanography, analyzed the contents of salmon stomachs to assess salmon diet. The stomachs were collected by local anglers and submitted to the Adult Salmon Diet Program. Greentree found that year-round, herring are the most important food for adult Chinook salmon throughout the Salish Sea. Anchovy were often found in stomachs collected near Howe Sound and sand lance were important in Victoria and Sidney.
Greentree also found seasonal differences in diet, with Chinook salmon consuming a higher diversity of prey in the winter as compared to the summer. Crustaceans became a more important food source in the winter in Sooke, and lanternfish became more common in the stomachs of salmon in Campbell River and Victoria.
“The boundaries that we found between different fish communities align closely with oceanographic features that divide the Salish Sea,” Greentree says. “For example, we suspect anchovy are taking advantage of freshwater from the Fraser and Squamish rivers flowing into the Strait of Georgia, and strong tides near Campbell River and Victoria are pulling lanternfish closer to the surface, where salmon can eat them.”