Steelhead vs. Rainbows

I know there aren't really any steelhead in MA, but can somebody please explain the difference to me? I It seems like every website says something different. I know it has something to do with migration...

A steelhead is a rainbow that spends time in saltwater.

What lucky said.

Steelhead are just rainbows that spend a couple of years in saltwater but goes back to freshwater to spawn.

Alrighty, thanks for the responses. Just wondering, then how are there steelheads in the Great Lakes? Are they just stocked in there, because there isn't really an ocean nearby...

Not exactly. My understanding is that they stock the tributaries of the Great Lakes with rainbows. Some of which then migrate to the Great Lakes only to return a few years later to spawn.

It's pretty similar to what happens with the ones that go out into saltwater, but in this case they go out into a "freshwater ocean".

afctually, the st Lawrence river comes in from the atlantic ocean in Canada and enters lake Ontario. do the steelies migrate and come back? I'm sure some probably do

I'm pretty sure it's the other way around. The St Lawrence runs from the lakes to the ocean.

Anyway, the steelhead/rainbows need moving water to spawn. So whether they are stocked into a river or pond/lake they need to find a shallow, rocky stream to spawn in order to successfully reproduce.

They probably do that a number of times throughout their lifespan.

Steelhead is a migratory rainbow (can be fresh or salt)