First report of growth rate of juvenile chum salmon Oncorhynchus keta captured in the Sea of Okhotsk offshore

The growth rate of 16 juvenile chum salmon Oncorhynchus keta (180–286 mm fork length) captured in the Sea of Okhotsk offshore during autumn 2002 was estimated using daily-incremental analysis of otoliths. The specimens originated from Hokkaido, Japan, and Sakhalin and Kamchatka, Russia. The average (range) of estimated mean daily growth in fork length was 1.19 (1.02–1.54) mm/day through the entire early ocean life and 1.05 (0.84–1.21) mm/day during the first 30 days after sea entry. These growth rates were higher than those reported previously for coastal resident or migrant juvenile chum salmon along the coast of Japan.