Re some earlier threads here about Keta salmon, have a Norm Thompson Christmas catalog here with smoked Keta salmon described as "light pink, lower in fat, firm in texture, and flakes nicely." Great marketing!

Sounds like they have invented a new fish. Kind of like they did when they invented the Chilean Sea Bass.

Onchorhynchus keta is the scientific name for chum. So that's probably what they are, smoked chum. Probably even Indian caught Hoodsport chum. Low in fat, you bet - yum <img border="0" alt="[eat]" title="" src="graemlins/eat.gif" />

I wonder if they are fresh caught chum or the ones that have been sitting on the bottom for a day or two.

Nope, not chums guys. But close. They are another Pacific Salmon, but native to Japan. They are not allowed to be fished in rivers, only in the salt. They are an inbetween a chum and a humpy (or maybe a sockeye). They have distinctive stripes similar to chum, but are a blackish color. Pretty cool looking fish. You will find the occasional drifter keta being caught up in Alaska. Never heard of any being caught below AK. I never knew about them myself until a few years back when I rec'd a salmon book from the UK. Has all salmon species worldwide in it (of the time before reclassification). There's a pic of a Keta there. I'll see what legalities there are and scan a pic of one.

69, I think you must be thinking about cherry salmon, which is the salmon species indigenous to the Japanese coast. Keta is chum.

Yep, you're right, I reread it. It's the Masu I'm thinking of (aka Cherry). My mistake, haven't read the book for a bit.

Actually, it's a pretty good book. Not alot on fishing, but most of you may like it. Does have almost every type of trout/salmon in it. Name of the book is "The Trout and Salmon Handbook" by Robin Ade. A pretty good read.

My apologies again. Trying to go by memory.

A quick little tidbit of info on Asian Salmon...

There are two species of Pacific Salmon that are only found in Asia...these are the cherry/masu salmon (O. masou) and the amago Salmon (O. rhodurus)

The cherry salmon is found in the small streams of Japan and has a landlocked version, known as the masu.

The amago salmon also a resident and anadramous form...the resident lives in lakes sort of like a kokanee.

I thini wdf tried to start a run of masu at Minter Cr in the 70's....