Coho Salmon Life Cycle, Tofino BC

Life Cycle of a Coho Salmon
Location: The plaque below can be found on the Rain Forest Trail - Route A
The stream is where the salmon's epic journey from egg to adult interlocks with the forest's own cycle of growth and decay. When snags topple into streams, the water slows down, reducing bank erosion and creating pools suitable for rearing young salmon. Rotting wood and leaves trapped by natural log dams are eaten by insects that, in turn, feed salmon. Even the living forest plays a role, as the massive trees and tangled bush shade the stream, and shield the developing salmon eggs from lethal light rays.

The apparent chaos of the rainforest creates a variety of living space for plants and animals. Each inhabitant interacts in a web of life that, left undisturbed, will continue to sustain the forest.

Coho Life Cycle
1 Spawning occurs in October and November.
2. Eggs Hatch into alevins which remain in the gravel one year feeding off their yolk sacs.
3. Fry emerge from the gravel in spring and spend one year in the nursery stream.
4. Smolts head out to sea.
5. Adults spend 1-2 years in the ocean.
6. Salmon return to spawn in the stream where they were born.

Rain Forest Trail, Welcome To Tofino, BC