Sea Trout vs Salmon
Both these fish species belong to the same family and share some common features. Unless a person is very familiar of these fishes, it is difficult to identify them apart. However, the differences between sea trout and salmon are interesting to know. Despite the close relationship in their morphology and behaviours, a slightly deeper observation would give more differences between sea trout and salmon.
Sea Trout
Sea trout, Salmotruttamorphatrutta, is an anadromous fish with a more round shaped body than slender and streamlined one. They are naturally ranging in the oceans and freshwater pools around Europe and Asia. Sea trouts are considered largely as freshwater species, but they are naturally devised to live in saltwater, migrate to freshwater for spawning (anadromous), and die to provide nutrient-rich waters for the growing trout fry. In sea trouts, the head is slightly round and mouth extends to backwards beyond eyes. The colourations of sea trouts include too many black colour spots with a series of red colour spots along the lateral line. The edges of the caudal fin are rounded, and the shape of the caudal fin itself could be either square or convex. Sea trouts have a broad wrist of tail it easily slips through the hands, when people try to catch them. There are 13 – 16 scales between adipose fin and lateral fin in sea trouts. Their pectoral fin is slightly short and has round edges. The adipose fin of this fish species has an orange colour spot. Those characteristics are far too good to identify a sea trout without a problem.
Salmon
Salmon is a very popular fish species, especially as a food fish living in temperate waters. They are an anadromous fish species, as they are born in freshwater streams, migrate to sea and live there, and migrate through freshwater rivers against the flowing waters to spawn and die. There are several species of salmons viz. Sockeye, Chum, Pink, Chinook, Steelhead… etc. The North Atlantic and Pacific coasts are their natural distribution ranges, but nowadays salmons have been produced in many parts of the world using aquaculture techniques due to their very high popularity among people as a food fish. Some of the physical characteristics are important to know in order to identify them correctly. There is no orange colour spot in their adipose fin, and the number of scales between adipose fin and lateral fin could be between 13 and 16. The wrist of the salmon tail is slender, and the fish is easy to handle after capture. Their caudal fin is highly forked, and it has pointed edges. The pectoral fin is long, and the tip is more pointed than rounded. The head is usually pointed, and the maxilla does not extend beyond the eye. Salmons are very efficient swimmers with a slender and streamlined body.
|
What is the difference between Sea Trout and Salmon? • Salmon is a common name for several species while sea trout is the common name of one particular morph of a particular species. • Salmon has a more streamlined body than sea trout. • Sea trouts have more spots on the body than salmons have. • Salmon naturally lives around Northern Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, while sea trout is native to European and Asian seas. • Sea trout prefers freshwater more than salmons do. • Salmon has a more pointed head and fin than sea trouts do. • Sea trout has an orange colour spot on the adipose fin but not, in salmons. • The scale count between adipose fin and lateral fin is higher in salmons than in sea trouts. • It is a broader wrist of tail in sea trout than in salmon. • Salmons are easy to handle while sea trouts tend to slip through the hands.
|