Stocking native Brook Trout?

[steveo]

http://wvmetronews.com/2017/11/04/dnr-looks-to-enhance-native-brook-trout-waters/

 

[afishinado]

steveo wrote:
http://wvmetronews.com/2017/11/04/dnr-looks-to-enhance-native-brook-trout-waters/

Wow...sounds like a great proactive and comprehensive program aimed at increasing the native brook trout population in both quantity and quality, along with expanding their range.

Hopefully it works! I would be all for a similar program in PA.

Thanks for posting.

 

[troutbert]

I disagree with the hatchery part of the program. That makes no sense at all.

The rest of it sounds good.

 

[afishinado]

They are looking to reconnect and repopulate the entire watershed with native brook trout. Filling in the gaps with a hatchery raised brood of wild fish stocked back into their native watershed could be a gamechanger to finally turn the tide reverse loss of our native trout.

From the article:

The proposed plan includes designation of watersheds which are native brook trout waters, are not stocked with hatchery raised fish, have had some level of management or restoration work, and seem to have good support from anglers.

“They need to be a large, contiguous and well connected native brook trout watershed,” said Thorne. “This is a watershed idea based on a lot of the research I and other people have conducted. Connectivity between the tributaries and main stems is how we see increased growth in fish. They have larger habitat, more food available, and can move to different habitats during different parts of their life cycle.”

The concept includes a second plan of action, the possibly to spawn, rear, and distribute some of those native brook trout in a hatchery environment to bolster populations.

“We’ve had some success translocating fish, shocking from one stream and transferring to another,” Thorne said. “If we put them back into the appropriate habitat, the wild fish will reproduce.”

The plan however, suggests taking it a step further and trying to do some artificial work within the hatchery–but limiting the genetic makeup to individual watersheds.

“We have some stock and we’re going to hold them until they are ready to spawn,” Thorne explained. “We’ll spawn them in the hatchery and raise some native brook trout from a particular stream. Those raised from a particular stream will go back into that watershed.”

The work will be done as part of an agreement with a West Virginia University aquaculture researcher center in Hardy County, near the community of Wardensville. Thorne said although it’s not easy, Tennessee and a few other states have had some limited success with hatchery spawn of native brook trout..

For now, the project is all just a concept and yet to be fully implemented into a management plan. Thorne said it needs support to move forward.

“It needs to have a vocal constituency,” he said. “It doesn’t have to be a majority, but it needs to have a vocal group to go out there and help us sell this idea.”

 

[troutbert]

I read the article.

Raising and stocking hatchery fish with the goal of improving wild brook trout populations doesn't make sense.

In nearly all cases, if the conditions are right, wild brook trout will already be there, filling in from the headwaters and tributaries.

In the very rare event that a polluted stream is cleaned up, and it is totally isolated, with no connection to waters with wild brook trout, then all that is needed is for brook trout to be introduced. Which can be done by moving some brook trout over from another stream.

And that just needs to be done once. There is no need for, and no benefit from, a continuing stocking program.

It will not benefit the brook trout populations. It's a waste of money.

And there could be genetic issues. When you put wild trout in hatcheries, you very quickly begin altering their genetics.

 

[afishinado]

The thing I find interesting, is the conclusion the WV fisheries biologists came to about brook trout growing to larger sizes if they have access to larger waterways.

The ability to move back and forth seasonally from smaller tribs to larger and more fertile water is identified as a major key to brookies growing to a larger size.

This same scenario was discussed on here when Sal posted up the pic of the large brookie he caught.

 

[JackM]

God has infinite intelligence and so there is no reason to suspect he will not determine the specimens that survive in any given brood so as to be most likely to thrive and reproduce. Unless there is something grotesque about the brood stock, I would anticipate that God will have no problem selecting those specimens that are equally beautiful as the heritage strains. Amen.

 

[salmo]

I agree with Troutbert about trying to reintroduce native brook trout by stocking. Seems like a formula for disaster, like whirling disease.
I have always wondered why brook trout aren’t reestablished populations in streams like Spring Creek and Big Fishing Creek. Is it temperature, oxygen content, alkinity, or some combination? Is there any historical record of brook trout in these creeks? Just wonderin.

 

[Swattie87]

In Spring and BFC, and many other similar streams in PA, the answer is the introduction and now overwhelming presence of Brown Trout.

 

[JeffK]

Over in NJ there is talk of using Trout in the Classroom to raise wild brookies to reintroduce into adjacent streams that are newly recovered. Some recovered streams are isolated by culverts which don't allow brookies to venture in. However, removal of barriers is a controversial topic since it may allow brown trout to move in. There is one brookie stream where there is discussion of adding a barrier to brown trout, but it has not been done. Genetics work done a few years ago has identified likely (in the absence of pre-stocking samples there is no 100% assurance) heritage strain brookies for a number of watersheds allowing a genetic pool for brookie reintroduction from sources in the same watershed.

But as Troutbert argued, it hasn't been used since there are no clear cases where it is warranted. Even the tiniest trickles seem to have some residual brookie populations. Nature does a pretty good job of spreading trout where they are able to survive.

 

[tomgamber]

troutbert wrote:
if the conditions are right, wild brook trout will already be there, filling in from the headwaters and tributaries.

Unless the conditions are vastly improved from when the population was possibly (or probably, this is Jersey) decimated by pollution.

This why we have always needed stocking. Many of the wild fish in our streams are the spawn of stocked fish. The streams are still polluted but far better than they were 50 -75 years ago from logging, mining and development. Is there a point at which stocking is no longer necessary? Maybe. I have not seen evidence of that yet.

My favorite stream within driving distance has excellent water quality, a canopy that keeps it cool into summer and headwaters filled with wild possibly native brook trout. But its over fished. Not legally. Its been continually poached to the point the local TU and PFC no longer does fall or winter stockings. So a perfectly good stream sits basically barren. So where are all these wild fish?

 

[misanthropist]

troutbert wrote:
I read the article.

Raising and stocking hatchery fish with the goal of improving wild brook trout populations doesn't make sense.

In nearly all cases, if the conditions are right, wild brook trout will already be there, filling in from the headwaters and tributaries.

In the very rare event that a polluted stream is cleaned up, and it is totally isolated, with no connection to waters with wild brook trout, then all that is needed is for brook trout to be introduced. Which can be done by moving some brook trout over from another stream.

And that just needs to be done once. There is no need for, and no benefit from, a continuing stocking program.

It will not benefit the brook trout populations. It's a waste of money.

And there could be genetic issues. When you put wild trout in hatcheries, you very quickly begin altering their genetics.

Well said. I agree.