Orange-spotted pipefish in the Lembeh Strait of Sulawesi, Indonesia (© Daniela Dirscherl/Getty Images)

Cleaning behaviour of blue-striped grunt and four-eyed butterfly fish, Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, USA -- Stephen Frink/Corbis ©

The Spawning

I stopped by a river to get a shot of a sunset. I forgot the sunset when
I saw the Chinook Salmon spawning so close to shore. These Salmon always
return to their place of birth to spawn and this poor hen was banged up
from her trecherous journey from the Pacific Ocean to this spot 100 miles
up the Umpqua river in Douglas County Oregon. Chinook Salmon die after
they spawn. This graceful lady has finished her life's task. Her eggs
are buried in a gravel nest beneath her, the male has fertilized them
and gone his own way... and she is waiting to die.

I love the mosaic look caused by the water movement.

The Spawning

This is a shot from two years ago.. this same time of year. Its my favorite of all my photos.

I stopped by a river to get a shot of a sunset. I forgot the sunset when I saw the Chinook Salmon spawning so close to shore. These Salmon always return to their place of birth to spawn and this poor hen was banged up from her trecherous journey from the Pacific Ocean to this spot 100 miles up the Umpqua river in Douglas County Oregon. Chinook Salmon die after they spawn. This graceful lady has finished her life's task. Her eggs are buried in a gravel nest beneath her, the male has fertilized them and gone his own way... and she is waiting to die.