The Davis Strait - DCE - Nationalt Center for Miljø og Energi

Salmon, Salmo salar
Biology and distribution: Atlantic salmon migrates to Greenland from countries
around the North Atlantic. In Greenland, the only known spawning
population of Atlantic salmon is located in the Kapisillit river in the inner
part of the Nuuk fjord, West Greenland (Nielsen 1961). Other rivers that
could potentially hold a salmon population exist, but in general the rivers of
Greenland are short, steep and cold (Jonas 1974). Although persistent, the
contribution of the small Kapisillit population to the salmon fishery around
Greenland must be regarded as insignificant compared to other countries
around the North Atlantic. Salmon can be found in the waters around
Greenland throughout the year, but abundance seems to peak in the autumn
from August to October. In West Greenland the northern distribution varies
from year to year, but salmon can be found as far north as the Upernavik
district around 72 o N.
Population size: In recent years the overall status of the stocks of both North
American and European origin contributing to the West Greenland fishery is
among the lowest recorded, and as a result the abundance of salmon in
Greenland waters is thought to be extremely low compared to historic levels.
Capelin, Mallotus villosus
Distribution: Capelin has a circumpolar distribution and in Greenland it is
found from the southern tip to 73˚N and 70˚N on the west and east coast, respectively.
Although not thoroughly documented, known differences in
maximum length, progressive spawning and well separated fjord systems
suggest that individual fjord systems contains separate capelin stocks
(Sorensen & Simonsen 1988, Hedeholm et al. 2010).
Biology: Sometime during autumn to spring capelin migrates to the fjords,
where they form dense schools prior to spawning. Spawning takes place in
shallow water (