Title: Squaretails, Biology and Management of Maine’s Brook Trout

Author: Forrest Bonney

Copyright Date: 2007

Price: $10 at http://www10.informe.org/webshop_ifw/index.php?p=1859&c=12&storeID=2

ISBN-13: 978-0-9794363-0-7

Maine anglers and those who travel to the Pine Tree State in pursuit of trout have long been aware of the value of the brook trout fishery it provides.  Not until recently, however, has the unique worth of Maine’s wild and native brook trout populations been widely exposed.

Forrest Bonney’s new book, Squaretails, Biology and Management of Maine’s Brook Trout, comes at the heels of the Eastern Brook Trout Joint Venture, a collaborative project evaluating brook trout populations throughout their native range in the United States.  Preliminary results from the Joint Venture are showing that Maine represents the last stronghold for native brook trout, containing more brookies in their historic range than any other state.  A heightened focus on brook trout in Maine sets a perfect stage for Squaretails, where Bonney attempts to provide a compilation of brook trout history, biology, and current status in the state from the perspective of both angler and fisheries manager.  

The history of fisheries management is rooted in the attempt to reverse declines in popular fisheries and maintain fishing quality over time.  While most people can easily relate to this concept, further understanding of the practice of fish management is often lacking.  Bonney attempts to bridge this gap in understanding between biologists and the public by describing in detail the research and data collection practices undergone in the fisheries field and why biologists do certain things.

In the book, Bonney, who has been a fisheries biologist for the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife for 34 years, illustrates perhaps the best case yet for responsible stewardship of Maine’s brook trout resources.  He describes the long history and current status of brook trout fishing in Maine, including historical accounts of trophy squaretails caught in the state, and changes in the fishery over time resulting from the decline of brook trout populations in many waters. 

Forrest Bonney not only thoroughly describes the biology of brook trout in Squaretails; he also documents a fairly complete history of research and management practices that relate to brook trout in the state of Maine.  He explains the current threats to brook trout populations, as well as the future research needs to allow for proper stewardship of this valuable resource well into the future. 

Mark McCollough provides captivating cover art and other illustrations, and Ethan Nadeau and others provide excellent photography and illustrations, adding a valuable artistic element to the book.    

Squaretails is the most complete resource on Maine brook trout currently available and is a must read for Maine anglers and brook trout enthusiasts everywhere.  This book, as well as a more technical version of the same content are published by the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, and can be purchased at http://www10.informe.org/webshop_ifw/index.php?p=1859&c=12&storeID=2 . 

According to Peter Rolfe of the Australian Herald Sun, some in the Australian government are pushing to eradicate trout from some of the continent’s waters in hopes of restoring native species.  But such an idea doesn’t sit well at all with Aussie anglers.

Commission chief Wendy Craik conceded the removal of trout was a sensitive issue.

“I can understand that fishing people might be upset about this but we need to look at what is best for our rivers and native fish,” she said.

Trout were introduced to Australia beginning in the 1870’s, and the popularity of trout fishing has grown over time to the point where it provides an annual industry worth about $1.3 billion, much of that money brought in via fishing-related tourism.

Anglers and local residents are outraged, and argue that removing trout will be devastating to local economies.  In addition to removing trout, other fish species such as carp are expected to be targets for removal.  Many anglers do not oppose the removal of less desirable fish, but draw the line at trout.

In the Western United States native fish are plagued by nonnative trout introductions as well, but removing nonnative trout often opens the door for better opportunities to catch native trout species, which can be equally enjoyable to pursue.  Australians aren’t so lucky.  Removing trout from their waters would likely cause much more devastating impacts to recreational fishing because Australia lacks native trout. 

So will it be ’out with the trout’ in Australian waters?  Time and politics will tell.

Results from a recent genetic study in the state of New Jersey appear to indicate that some populations of brook trout in the state still contain the genes of the native strains that existed long before humans occupied the area.  The results come from research conducted by fisheries biologist Pat Hamilton, in conjunction with East Stroudsburg University. 

For many anglers, this is great news.  The idea of catching a native strain of trout holds great value for some.  Others, on the other hand, just want to catch fish, and may be dismayed by the idea that having native strains of trout may cause more restrictive fishing regulations.

The release of these findings come on the heels of a proposal to change the minimum length limit for trout in New Jersey from 7″ to 9″, among other proposed changes.

Read more about the genetic study here

The taimen (Hucho taimen) is the largest trout in the world, growing to over 6 feet long and up to 200 pounds!  While it has suffered declines from overfishing in parts of Russia and China, northern Mongolia boasts a healthy population of taimen.

Read more about taimen here and here

The New Mexico Game and Fish Department is planning to stock about 2,000 Rio Grande cutthroat trout next month in McLure Reservior, in Santa Fe.

The Rio Grande cutthroat, which is a subspecies of cutthroat trout, is native to the Southwest, and is the state fish of New Mexico.  Like most native trout in the West, the occurrence of Rio Grande cutthroat trout has declined as a result of human impacts in the form of habitat degradation and nonnative species introductions. 

A recent effort by New Mexico Fish Game and Fish involves restoring these native fishes by stocking them in lakes and streams, and removing nonnative species.  For the McLure Reservoir project, biologists will stock cutthroats within the next month, and return next spring to capture nonnative rainbow trout via electrofishing and remove them from the area. 

Removing rainbow trout is a very important part of the project because rainbows and cutthroats spawn at the same time and tend to hybridize, or crossbreed, with each other, which can then compromise the genetic integrity of the native fish.  In addition, rainbow trout and cutthroat trout share similar diets and occupy the same areas in streams, which provides the potential for competition between the two species.  More serious competitors with cutthroat trout are brown trout and brook trout, but neither of these species can hybridize with cutthroat trout.

The Rio Grande cutthroat trout was petitioned for listing under the Endangered Species Act by environmental groups in 1998.  The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service determined that the available information did not warrant listing of the species, and the issue has been tied up in the courts ever since.  The USFWS is currently conducting another status review on the species.

Hopefully the McLure Reservoir project will prove to be successful, and if not, it may provide an important learning experience for those interested in native species recovery. 

Read more about Rio Grande cutthroat trout on the Santa Fe National Forest website.