Most chum salmon spawn in small streams and intertidal zones.
Some chum travel more than 3,200 km (2,000 mi) up the Yukon River.
Chum  fry migrate out to sea from March through July, almost immediately after becoming free swimmers.
They spend one to three years traveling very long distances in the ocean.
These are the last salmon to spawn (November to January) in some regions.
In Alaska they are the first to spawn in June and August and are then followed by pink and coho salmon.
They die about two weeks after they return to the freshwater to spawn.
They utilize the lower tributaries of the watershed, tend to build nests called redds, really little more than protected depressions in the gravel, in shallow edges of the watercourse and at the tail end of deep pools.
The female lays eggs in the redd, the male sprays milt on the eggs, and the female covers the eggs with gravel.
The female can lay up to 4000 eggs.
Most chum salmon spawn in small streams and intertidal zones. Some chum travel more than 3,200 km (2,000 mi) up the Yukon River. Chum  fry migrate out to sea from March through July, almost immediately after becoming free swimmers. They spend one to three years traveling very long distances in the ocean. These are the last salmon to spawn (November to January) in some regions. In Alaska they are the first to spawn in June and August and are then followed by pink and coho salmon. They die about two weeks after they return to the freshwater to spawn. They utilize the lower tributaries of the watershed, tend to build nests called redds, really little more than protected depressions in the gravel, in shallow edges of the watercourse and at the tail end of deep pools. The female lays eggs in the redd, the male sprays milt on the eggs, and the female covers the eggs with gravel. The female can lay up to 4000 eggs.
Chum salmon