Sockeye Salmon

Sockeye salmon turn brilliant crimson during spawning migration - the most dramatic color transformation of any salmon species. But their real innovation is lake adaptation. Unlike other Pacific salmon that spawn primarily in rivers, sockeye require lakes in their lifecycle. Juvenile sockeye spend 1-3 years in lakes before ocean migration, feeding on zooplankton and growing in the relatively stable lacustrine environment. This lake phase adds a buffer against the river-spawning variability that affects other salmon.

The portfolio effect in sockeye populations is pronounced. Within a single population, individuals mature at ages ranging from 3 to 7 years. This means any given spawning year includes fish born across a 4-year window, and any cohort's offspring spread their reproduction across multiple future years. When environmental conditions devastate one spawning year, the population includes fish from other cohorts unaffected by that year's conditions. The variable age-at-maturity functions as temporal diversification.

For business, sockeye demonstrate how cohort diversification creates population resilience. Companies with products at various lifecycle stages, or revenue streams from customers acquired across multiple years, gain stability that single-cohort businesses lack. If one year's customer acquisition fails, revenue from other cohorts continues. The lake phase adds another lesson: inserting a stable growth stage between volatile periods (startup-to-growth, or ocean-to-spawning) can improve overall survival rates.