# Atlantic salmon (*Salmo salar*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/atlantic-salmon  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) is a species in the family Salmonidae, order Salmoniformes. It has been recorded in 52 countries, most often in France, Canada and Norway. Its IUCN Red List status is Near Threatened.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | Not recorded |
| Length | Not recorded |
| Lifespan | Not recorded |
| Main food | Not recorded |
| Habitat | Not recorded |
| Young per litter or clutch | Not recorded |
| Conservation status | Near Threatened (IUCN) |
| Recorded in | 52 countries |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- order: Salmoniformes
- family: Salmonidae
- genus: Salmo
- species: *Salmo salar* Linnaeus, 1758

Synonyms: *Salmo brevipes*, *Salmo caerulescens*, *Salmo gloverii*, *Salmo goedenii*, *Salmo gracilis*, *Salmo hamatus*, *Salmo hardinii*, *Salmo nobilis*, *Salmo ocla*, *Salmo renatus*, *Salmo rilla*, *Salmo salmo*, *Salmo salmulus*, *Salmo sebago*, *Salmo strom*, *Trutta relicta*, *Trutta salar*

## Where it has been recorded

Countries with openly licensed sighting records on GBIF (records in brackets). Recorded sightings, not a definitive range.

France (784864), Canada (303937), Norway (151193), Sweden (50372), United Kingdom (42507), Belgium (23801), Netherlands (15046), United States (13188), French Southern Territories (4574), Russia (3515), Germany (1301), Denmark (1122), Spain (1062), Australia (501), Finland (230), Switzerland (150), Svalbard & Jan Mayen (148), Greenland (81), Iceland (72), Mexico (72), Portugal (64), China (56), Ireland (48), Poland (35), Chile (28), Luxembourg (23), Singapore (20), Thailand (18), Lithuania (16), New Zealand (12), Isle of Man (9), Faroe Islands (8), Türkiye (8), Austria (6), Czechia (6), Latvia (6), Philippines (6), American Samoa (4), Estonia (4), St. Pierre & Miquelon (3), U.S. Virgin Islands (3), Argentina (2), Iran (2), Japan (2), Peru (2), Tokelau (2), South Africa (2), Åland Islands (1), French Guiana (1), Namibia (1), Puerto Rico (1), Ukraine (1)

## Common questions

### Where does the Atlantic salmon live?

The Atlantic salmon has openly licensed sighting records from 52 countries on GBIF. The most records come from France, Canada, Norway, Sweden and United Kingdom. These are recorded sightings, not a definitive range.

### Is the Atlantic salmon endangered?

The Atlantic salmon is listed as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List, meaning it is close to qualifying as threatened.

### What kind of animal is the Atlantic salmon?

The Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) belongs to the family Salmonidae in the order Salmoniformes.

## Sources

- [GBIF Backbone Taxonomy](https://www.gbif.org/dataset/d7dddbf4-2cf0-4f39-9b2a-bb099caae36c), CC BY 4.0, live API 2026-11-11. GBIF Secretariat. GBIF Backbone Taxonomy. Checklist dataset https://doi.org/10.15468/39omei accessed via GBIF.org.
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/), CC0 1.0, live API 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata, the free knowledge base.
- [GBIF occurrence aggregates (CC0 and CC BY records only)](https://www.gbif.org/occurrence/search), CC BY 4.0, live API 2026-11-11. GBIF.org occurrence search, country facet counts restricted to CC0 1.0 and CC BY 4.0 records.
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/), Per file, live API 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Licence and creator recorded per file.
- [English Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/), CC BY-SA 4.0, live API 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia.

Cite as: Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/atlantic-salmon