Habitat Improvement Benefits Trout in Vermont’s Batten Kill River
A recent electrofishing survey completed by the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department shows that stream habitat improvements in Vermont’s Batten Kill River appear to be the cause of increased fish numbers. The project was funded by Orvis, the Green Mountain National Forest, and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation. The project provided increased shelter and foraging areas for trout in a river that lacks such habitat due to development that has removed shoreline structure. Such habitat projects are common, and usually appear to be successful, but most go unmonitored. Hopefully Vermont Fish and Wildlife continues to monitor this project to determine if similar stream improvement provide benefits equal to or greater than their cost.