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Salmon Biology Lab (Marine Symbiosis Division)
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A lab studying how salmon return to the river where they were born and how their bodies change.
AboutAbout the lab
Exploring salmon homing and the mysteries of their bodies.
The Salmon Biology Lab studies the physiology and body structure of salmonid fishes that move between the sea and rivers.
When salmon swim downstream, they memorize the odor of the river where they were born, and when they mature, they return to that same river.
The lab investigates how this odor is learned and recalled, and the body changes seen in mature males, using tissues, genes, and hormones.
The lab aims to make the hatchery rearing and release of salmon sustainable, with consideration for ecosystems and climate change.
Key terms
- olfactory imprinting
- A special type of learning in which young salmon memorize the odor of their natal river as they migrate downstream, and the memory lasts for a long time.
- secondary sexual characteristics
- Physical features that appear differently in males and females at maturity, such as the dorsal hump and hooked snout of male salmon.
- androgen
- A hormone that produces male physical characteristics. In fish, 11-ketotestosterone is the representative androgen.
ResearchResearch themes
The lab aims to develop hatchery release programs that take advantage of salmon homing to their natal rivers into a sustainable food production system that also takes ecosystems and climate change into account. It studies the mechanisms of odor memory in salmonid fishes and the body changes that accompany maturation.
*Illustrative imageMemory of the Natal River's Odor
The lab investigates olfactory imprinting, in which salmon learn the odor, and the mechanism by which they recall it, focusing on molecules involved in neural signaling. By comparing gene activity in juveniles migrating downstream and adults migrating upstream, it seeks clues for determining the best time to release hatched juveniles.
*Illustrative imageThe Dorsal Hump of Pink Salmon
Using microscopy, the lab examined the dorsal hump that develops on the back of mature males, and showed that the central bone becomes longer and thicker with maturation, and that the surrounding tissue is not cartilage but tissue containing collagen. Findings also suggest that androgens are involved.
*Illustrative imageHow Males Develop the Hooked Snout
The lab examined the development of the upper-jaw cartilage and the lower-jaw bone in the kype, the hook-like extension of the snout seen in mature males. Androgen receptors are present in both jaws, suggesting that the kype is shaped through androgens.
*Illustrative imageThe Axillary Process at the Base of the Pelvic Fin
The function of the axillary process, a leaf-like structure near the salmon's pelvic fin, is still unknown. The lab examines the effects of removing it in a circulating water tank, and also uses histological staining and gene analysis to explore its relationship to swimming and secondary sexual characteristics.
MembersFaculty
- ProfessorHideaki Kudo
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Report an errorAbout the images
The top and research theme images are illustrative and were not taken at the lab. They are cropped from Wikimedia Commons images. Cropped CC BY-SA images are provided under the same CC BY-SA license as the original (version shown on each line).
- Top image: “Chum salmon leaping ( )” U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Headquarters / Public domain (cropped)
- Memory of the Natal River's Odor: “Juvenile Pink salmon” Fritho17 / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- The Dorsal Hump of Pink Salmon: “Humpback Salmon Breeding Male” A. Hoen and Co. / Public domain (cropped)
- How Males Develop the Hooked Snout: “Dog Salmon Breeding Male” A. Hoen and Co. / Public domain (cropped)
- The Axillary Process at the Base of the Pelvic Fin: “Chum salmon running - Olympic National Forest - October 2017 01” US Forest Service / Public domain (cropped)
- Related lab (北方生物圏フィールド科学センター 臼尻水産実験所): “Usujiri Fishing Port 20220605” Reh gambare / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (海洋共生学講座
（秋田晋吾 准教授） ): “Kelp forest at Taranga pinnacles Hen and Chicken Islands PA232359” Peter Southwood / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped) - Related lab (海洋共生学講座
（バウア・ジョン・リチャード 准教授） ): “Enteroctopus dolfeini” NOAA/R. N. Lea [1] / Public domain (cropped) - Related lab (プランクトン研究室): “Ice algae” Fionajwhite / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
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