Fish
Eulachon
Thaleichthys pacificus · also called candlefish
Dried and fitted with a simple wick, a eulachon could once genuinely be lit and burned like a small candle, a testament to just how much oil this modest Pacific Northwest fish packs into its body. For generations, that same oil made it one of the most valuable trade goods along the coast.
Overview
The eulachon, Thaleichthys pacificus, is a small, exceptionally oily anadromous fish native to coastal waters and rivers along the Pacific coast of North America. Its long-standing cultural and economic importance to Indigenous Pacific Northwest communities sets it apart from most similarly sized forage fish.
More than just a fish
Beyond its ecological role as prey for larger predators, the eulachon carries a genuine cultural weight, with its oil historically traded across entire regions along dedicated overland routes built specifically around this one small, remarkably oily fish.
Status
Near Threatened — declining in parts of its range due to changing ocean conditions, habitat degradation, and bycatch pressure.
Eulachon: common questions
Why is the eulachon also called the candlefish?
The eulachon has an extraordinarily high body oil content compared with most fish, a trait so pronounced that dried specimens could historically be fitted with a wick and burned directly as a candle, a practical use that gave rise to the species' common alternate name of candlefish among early settlers and Indigenous communities alike.
Why was the eulachon important to Indigenous Pacific Northwest communities?
The eulachon has long held major cultural and economic significance for Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest, valued both as a nutritious food source and for its oil, which was traded along historic overland routes sometimes called grease trails, connecting coastal and inland communities across a wide region.
Why have eulachon populations declined in some areas?
Eulachon populations have declined significantly in parts of their range due to a combination of changing ocean conditions, habitat degradation in spawning rivers, and bycatch in other fisheries, with some historically important spawning runs experiencing dramatic reductions that have prompted increased conservation monitoring.
Does the eulachon spend its whole life in the ocean?
No, a eulachon spends most of its adult life in the ocean before migrating into freshwater rivers to spawn, an anadromous life cycle shared with salmon, and most individuals spawn only once or twice in their relatively short lifespan before dying.