Chinook Salmon Identification Guide
How to recognize a chinook salmon by its black gums and spots on both lobes of the tail fin.
Read the full Chinook Salmon encyclopedia entry →
Key identification features
- Largest Pacific salmon, with a robust, torpedo-shaped body and a silvery blue-green back in the ocean phase
- Black gums at the base of the teeth - the single most reliable field mark
- Small black spots covering the back and both the upper and lower lobes of the tail fin
- Spawning adults turn dark red, maroon, olive, or blackish, with males developing a pronounced hooked jaw
- Can exceed 40 pounds, far larger on average than other Pacific salmon
Common look-alikes
- Coho salmon: has white gums and black spots only on the upper tail lobe, not both lobes like chinook
- Chum salmon: lacks large black spots altogether and shows a calico, tiger-striped pattern when spawning
- Pink salmon: much smaller body size, with large oval (not small round) spots on the tail
Where you'll see one
Chinook salmon range throughout the North Pacific, spawning in major river systems from California and the Pacific Northwest north through Alaska and into eastern Russia, after spending one to several years at sea.
Frequently asked questions
What's the single best way to identify a chinook salmon?
Check inside the mouth - chinook are the only Pacific salmon with black gums at the base of the teeth.
How do I tell chinook from coho salmon?
Look at the tail - chinook has black spots on both lobes, while coho has spots only on the upper lobe and white gums instead of black.