Brook Trout | Stream Fishing, Spawning & Conservation
The scientific name of the brook trout is salvelinus fontinalis. It is the state of nine states including New Hampshire, Michigan, Virginia, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Vermont, and West Virginia.
Physical characteristics of the Brook Trout
An adult stream trout is about 2 feet long and weighs about 7 pounds. It is greenish brown with a mottled pattern on the sides and back. The fins and tail are usually red as well as part of the abdomen and flanks. Red lines and red dots are found on the belly and tail. The red dots are usually surrounded by blue circles. Due to its spotting and speckling, it is sometimes called the spotted salmon.
Get Free Counseling
Habitat of the Brook Trout
The brook trout is a freshwater fish that commonly lives in streams and small lakes in the eastern United States and Canada. Stream trout tend to survive in very cold, pure water. They do not live long and usually live about 4-5 years in the wild.
Because brook trout need clean water to live, conservationists often use brook trout populations to determine how polluted an area of water is. If the population is large and growing, that usually means the water is free of contaminants. If the population is decreasing, it usually means that their environment and the water in which they live is polluted.
What do Brook Trout Eat?
Brook trout mainly eat insects, but they also eat smaller fish and crustaceans.
Do people fish for Brook Trout?
The brook trout is a very popular fish for anglers. It can often be overfished, meaning so many people have been caught that the local population begins to decline. Therefore, there are often rules about how many fish you can catch and their size before you can keep them. Many recreational anglers will release any stream trout they catch back into the water.
Interesting facts about Brook Trout
Stream salmon is part of the trout family.
Even though it’s called salmon, it’s actually arctic salmon.
It can be found as far northwest as Alaska.
They can grow to nearly 3 feet and 14 pounds and live up to 9 years.
The record for the longest spotted trout caught is 31 inches.
Both splake and tiger char are hybrids of brook trout.