Steelhead

For other uses, see Steelhead (disambiguation).
Photo of hand holding adult steelhead
Adult steelhead showing color upon returning to fresh water

Steelhead, or occasionally steelhead trout, is the anadromous form of the coastal rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss irideus) or Columbia River redband trout (O. m. gairdneri, also called redband steelhead).[1][2] Steelhead are native to cold-water tributaries of the Pacific basin in Northeast Asia and North America. Like other sea-run (anadromous) trout and salmon, steelhead spawn in freshwater, smolts migrate to the ocean to forage for several years and adults return to their natal streams to spawn. Steelhead are iteroparous, although survival is only approximately 10–20%.[3]

  1. ^ Behnke, Robert J. (2002). "Rainbow and Redband Trout". Trout and Salmon of North America. Tomelleri, Joseph R. (illustrator). New York: The Free Press. p. 67. ISBN 978-0-7432-2220-4.
  2. ^ "Steelhead Trout". NOAA Fisheries. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association. 17 February 2022.
  3. ^ Behnke, Robert J. (2002). "Rainbow and Redband Trout". Trout and Salmon of North America. Tomelleri, Joseph R. (illustrator). New York: The Free Press. p. 76. ISBN 978-0-7432-2220-4.