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The masu salmon ( Oncorhynchus masou), also known as masu () or sakura masu in Japan, is a species of salmonid belonging to the genus Oncorhynchus, found in the North Pacific along Northeast Asia/ coasts from the Russian Far East (Primorsky Krai, Kamchatka Peninsula, Sakhalin and Kuril Islands) to south through Korea, Japan and Taiwan. Although generally accepted as a salmon in the western world, the fish is actually regarded as a trout in Japan (its most famous native range) as it is the most commonly seen freshwater salmonid in the Japanese archipelago.
A number of subspecies are known, including the widespread nominate subspecies yamame ( O. m. masou), the critically endangered Formosan salmon ( O. m. formosanus) in landlocked waters of Taiwan, the Biwa trout ( O. m. rhodurus) endemic of Lake Biwa, and the anadromous amago ( O. m. macrostomus) restricted to western Japan.
As adults, masu salmon tend to weigh and measure roughly in length. The maximum size that can be attained by this species (which is in the region of Primorsky Krai) is long and in weight.
After spawning, most passing fish die, and those that remain alive (preferentially dwarf males) participate in spawning the next year, too. Emerging from the nest, the young do not travel to the sea immediately, but remain in spawning areas, in the upper reaches of rivers, and on shallows with weak currents. The young move to pools and rolls of the river core to feed on chironomids, stone flies, and may fly larvae, and on airborne insects. The masu salmon travels to the ocean in its second, or occasionally even third year of life.
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