Salmoninae

Salmoninae is a subfamily of the family Salmonidae, encompassing the group commonly referred to as salmons and their close relatives. In many classifications, it includes the genera Salmo and Oncorhynchus. Representative members include the Atlantic salmon and brown trout of Salmo, and the Pacific salmon species and steelhead of Oncorhynchus (for example, O. tshawytscha, O. nerka, O. kisutch, O. keta, O. gorbuscha, and O. mykiss). Some taxonomic treatments also place the genus Salvelinus (chars) within Salmoninae, while others treat Salvelinus as a separate lineage within Salmonidae. Members of Salmoninae generally share a similar body form and possess an adipose fin, with many species displaying an anadromous life cycle that involves migrating between freshwater and the ocean to breed.

Species within Salmoninae are native to cool, temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere, with the greatest diversity in North America and Eurasia. They occupy a range of habitats, including rivers, lakes, and coastal marine environments, and many are adapted to variable conditions such as changes in flow, temperature, and turbidity. Reproduction typically occurs in clean, gravelly substrates where eggs are laid in gravel nests and hatch into alevins before developing into fry; life cycles may include extended freshwater residency before ocean migration, depending on the species. Economically and culturally, Salmoninae are of major importance for commercial and recreational fisheries, as well as for ecosystem function. They face pressures from overfishing, habitat alteration, dam construction, pollution, and climate change, leading to regionally varied conservation and management efforts.