Catchable

Learn / Lesson 2 of 6

Hatchery or wild? Check the fin first

Find the small fin on its back, near the tail. If it was clipped off, treat it as a hatchery-marked fish. Then check today's rule.

The official source wins. This page explains. The official pages at the bottom decide.

Why

DFO clips the small adipose fin of most hatchery coho and many hatchery Chinook. A missing fin marks a hatchery fish.

In some places you may keep a hatchery fish but must let a wild one go. The fin tells you which fish you have. The rule for that water tells you what to do with it.

Not every hatchery fish is clipped, so a fish with its fin counts as wild.

What to do

  1. Look on the fish's back, between the big back fin and the tail.

    Because that is where the small adipose fin grows.

  2. Look for a healed scar where the fin was.

    Because DFO describes a hatchery-marked fish as one with a healed scar in place of the adipose fin.

  3. If the fin is there, treat the fish as wild.

  4. Keep the fish in the water while you look.

    Because a fish you may have to let go has the best chance if it stays wet.

  5. Check today's rule for this water and this fish.

Two salmon, one above the other. Fin there: treat it as wild. Fin gone, with a healed scar: a hatchery-marked fish. fin there: treat it as wild fin gone, healed scar: hatchery-marked
Fin there: treat it as wild. Fin gone, with a healed scar: a hatchery-marked fish.

The official words

In short, in our words

DFO marks many hatchery salmon by removing the adipose fin. Whether you may keep a hatchery salmon or a wild one depends on the water and the day. The rule for each area is in DFO's notices.

Last checked against these four pages on . The DFO pages say they were last modified on , , and .

Try it in Catchable

Tap a water and pick a salmon. Open What you can fish with on the card to see whether hatchery fish, wild fish or both may be kept there.

Open the map

Watch next

Background only. The rule lives at the source.

Is every hatchery fish clipped? No. Some hatchery fish keep their fin, so a fish with its fin is treated as wild.