Premium
Comparative Sport Fish Performance of Bonneville Cutthroat Trout in Three Small Put‐Grow‐and‐Take Reservoirs
Author(s) -
Hepworth Dale K.,
Chamberlain Charles B.,
Ottenbacher M. J.
Publication year - 1999
Publication title -
north american journal of fisheries management
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.587
H-Index - 72
eISSN - 1548-8675
pISSN - 0275-5947
DOI - 10.1577/1548-8675(1999)019<0774:csfpob>2.0.co;2
Subject(s) - trout , fishery , rainbow trout , oncorhynchus , catch and release , stock (firearms) , fishing , biology , fish <actinopterygii> , ecology , geography , recreational fishing , archaeology
Field trials using two forms of Bonneville cutthroat trout Oncorhynchus clarki utah were conducted in three small put‐grow‐and‐take reservoirs located in southern Utah and performance of these forms was compared with nonnative trout traditionally stocked in Utah. For more than 2 years we conducted poststocking assessments of relative abundance, growth, body condition (K TL ), sexual maturity, and return to the creel among fishes subjected to a variety of environmental conditions. Study fish included Bonneville cutthroat trout native to southern Utah; Bonneville cutthroat from Bear Lake in Utah and Idaho; an introduced subspecific hybrid (Yellowstone cutthroat trout O. clarki bouvieri × Colorado River cutthroat trout O. clarki pleuriticus), commonly stocked in the past for sport fish management; and rainbow trout O. mykiss, which have been traditionally the most frequently stocked species in Utah. Rainbow trout had the fastest growth, highest condition, and highest returns (39–60%), except when marginal winter conditions at one reservoir resulted in winterkill. Winter losses of cutthroat trout were not evident, and relative abundance was high in all reservoirs at the time sport fishing was initiated. Returns to the creel among cutthroat trout were highest for the Bear Lake stock (36–60%), intermediate for the southern stock (23–42%), and lowest for the hybrid (15–24%). There were distinct differences in body condition among study fish, and southern Bonneville cutthroat trout had the highest condition among the cutthroat trout tested. Mean lengths among cutthroat trout were greater for the Bear Lake and hybrid stocks than for the southern stock. Higher body condition for southern Bonneville cutthroat trout, however, resulted in nearly equivalent weights among cutthroat trout, and southern Bonneville cutthroat trout were more acceptable to anglers at smaller sizes. Although all study fish exhibited traits that could be beneficial in certain management situations, overall performance of southern Bonneville cutthroat trout was most similar to rainbow trout for stocking in small reservoirs.