Evidence of successful recruitment of non‐native pink salmon Oncorhynchus gorbuscha in Iceland

• Published in: Journal of Fish Biology
• Main Authors: Skóra, Michał E., Guðbergsson, Guðni, Copp, Gordon H., Jones, J. Iwan
• Other Authors: European Commission
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Wiley 2023
• Subjects: Botnsá; Norway; Iceland; North Atlantic; Oncorhynchus gorbuscha; Pink salmon
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/jfb.15556; https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/jfb.15556

Abstract In mid‐May 2022, pink salmon Oncorhynchus gorbuscha smolts were caught in the rivers Botnsá, Grímsá, and Langá in Iceland. This observation provides the first evidence of successful spawning and the completion of the freshwater phase of the life cycle in Icelandic rivers. It is the most western record of O. gorbuscha smolts in Europe, further west than Russia, Norway, and the UK. Smolts originating from Iceland potentially support the recruitment of this species in the North Atlantic and may lead to the establishment of a self‐sustaining population in Iceland.