Rusty Spinner
Active member
No surprises today at the annual trout stocking meeting. While I didn't do a headcount, there were more than usual in attendance. The Division staff did a very good job of laying out the issues around furunculosis, and their plans currently and those they will be researching much more closely such as covering the raceways with a roof (birds like blue herons or ospreys or even the bald eagles likely brought in this disease). There were mostly good questions asked and answered. There were only a few semi-unreasonable (IMO) comments, but they were either out of fear (unfounded, again, IMO) of spreading this disease to other fish and wanting all the trout killed or were wanting the Division to somehow "make up" for this year's lost fish into certain waters they were concerned for next year (can't be done, they only raise so many and taking more for one means less for others).
Expect to see mainly rainbows stocked at least for the next 2 or 3 years for several reasons. First, they have shown no outbreak even though exposed. They may still be low level carriers of this disease, but have not shown "break out" (visible and/or pathological testing), however, just to note that. Secondly, they do not compete for habitat of our native (and wild) brook trout anywhere near the way that non-native brown trout do. Thirdly, they will not produce except in a very small percentage of NJ trout streams meaning you know where they will not spawn and push out native brook trout. And lastly, and very importantly to anglers, creel surveys continue to show that stocked rainbows are far more catchable than are the stocked brook trout or the stocked brown trout. There is some old belief that brook trout are the easiest of the trout to fool which may be true of wild fish of the three species, but is not of state stocked brookies, browns and bows. So if the goal of the state hatchery is to raise trout that anglers can catch for fun and/or to eat, then stocking mostly rainbows is better for your angling community than stocking lots of brookies and browns that aren't caught in as high percentages as are the bows.
Stay in contact with the Division's website for continued updated information: http://www.state.nj....ut_policy14.htm
Expect to see mainly rainbows stocked at least for the next 2 or 3 years for several reasons. First, they have shown no outbreak even though exposed. They may still be low level carriers of this disease, but have not shown "break out" (visible and/or pathological testing), however, just to note that. Secondly, they do not compete for habitat of our native (and wild) brook trout anywhere near the way that non-native brown trout do. Thirdly, they will not produce except in a very small percentage of NJ trout streams meaning you know where they will not spawn and push out native brook trout. And lastly, and very importantly to anglers, creel surveys continue to show that stocked rainbows are far more catchable than are the stocked brook trout or the stocked brown trout. There is some old belief that brook trout are the easiest of the trout to fool which may be true of wild fish of the three species, but is not of state stocked brookies, browns and bows. So if the goal of the state hatchery is to raise trout that anglers can catch for fun and/or to eat, then stocking mostly rainbows is better for your angling community than stocking lots of brookies and browns that aren't caught in as high percentages as are the bows.
Stay in contact with the Division's website for continued updated information: http://www.state.nj....ut_policy14.htm