What is Arctic char?
[[File:Large male arctic char.jpg|thumb|right|300px|{{Center|Large male Arctic char and Erik}}]] '''Arctic char''' or '''Arctic charr''', '''''Salvelinus alpinus''''', is a cold water [[fish]] in the family [[Salmonidae]]. It is [[Indigenous (ecology)|native]] to [[Arctic]], [[subarctic|sub-Arctic]] and [[alpine lake]]s. It [[Breed|breeds]] in [[fresh water]]. Char may either be [[landlocked]] or [[anadromous]], [[Migration|migrating]] to the [[sea]]. No other freshwater fish is found as far north. It is the only fish species in [[Lake Hazen]]<nowiki/>on [[Ellesmere Island]] in the [[Northern Canada|Canadian Arctic]]. It is one of the rarest fish species in [[United Kingdom|Britain]].<ref>''Advances in Invertebrates and Fish Telemetry'', eds. Jean Paul Lagardere; Marie-Laure Begout Anras; Guy Claireaux (Dordrecht: Kluwer, 1998), p. 173</ref>Found only in deep, cold, [[glacial lake]]s, and is at risk from [[acid]]ification. In other parts of its range, such as [[Scandinavia]], it is much more common, and is [[fishery|fished]] extensively. It is also common in the [[Alps]], (particularly in [[Trentino]] and in the mountain part of [[Lombardy]]). Char are also found in [[Iceland]]. In [[Siberia]], it is known as ''golets''. The Arctic char is a [[:wikt:relative|relative]] of both [[Atlantic salmon|salmon]] and [[lake trout]]. It shares [[Trait (biology)|traits]] with both. The char's color depends on the time of year and where it lives.<ref name=Wicksteed319>Julian Wicksteed, ''ALASKA Angler Walkabout Series - Book 3'' (Angler Walkabout Publications, 2012), p. 319</ref> The back is usually dark [[brown]] or [[green|olive green]]. It has dark [[:wikt:spot|spots]] on a light [[:wikt:background|background]] on its sides, and the color can be [[Gold (color)|gold]], brown, [[red]], or [[Orange (color)|orange]]. At [[Spawn (biology)|spawning]], the [[fin]]s and [[belly]] become bright red or orange. == References == {{reflist}} {{Commons category|Salvelinus alpinus}} [[Category:Freshwater fish]] [[Category:Salmoniformes]