Photo By Ronald L. Sinfelt III

We can depend on New England’s weather to be fickle. We can also depend on our state fisheries biologists to be passionate, dedicated professionals. Last year, those two dependables complemented each other to create an almost perfect season for trout anglers in 2006. Will it be another near-perfect season in 2007?

Early last year, the cold spring and cool rains kept waters temperatures low, creating an ideal environment for each state’s stocked fish and wild fish to spread out, survive and thrive.

While anglers keep their fingers crossed that the weather cooperates, they may want to add a few new terms to their salmonid lexicon, including splake, tiger trout and triploids.

While discussing fly patterns, lure selections or types of bait with angling partners, consider a debate on the Eastern Brook Trout Joint Venture. The EBTJV involves 17 eastern states from Maine to Georgia, designed to leverage the information gleaned by state agencies with the long-term goal of developing a comprehensive restoration and education strategy to improve habitat for brook trout.

2007 OVERVIEW
So what does the 2007 trout season looks like? If the weather holds true, anglers can look for a good year. A “good” year, however, has a different meaning, depending on whether you’re a fisheries biologist or a trout fisherman.

New England’s anglers may rest assured that their state’s fisheries personnel are working hard to provide quality fish and improved angling opportunities.

Here’s a look at what trout anglers in your state can expect in 2007:

VERMONT
The Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department’s Division of Fisheries manages a combination of programs for stocked and wild trout populations as well as lake trout. About 45 percent of stocked fish are part of the state’s restoration efforts, which focuses on re-establishing wild trout populations in certain waters such as Lake Champlain and the Connecticut River. Put-and-take stocking is always part of the stocking program, but biologists are now targeting prime habitat for fish survival, even in waters with limited natural reproduction.

Expect hatchery-reared fish to be yearlings, according to Rich Kirn, a Vermont fisheries biologist. Also, expect larger 2-year-old fish that typically run about 2 pounds.

Kirn explained that streams provide a harsh environment for put-and-take trout. Fish stocked in ponds and larger bodies of water that are colder can survive and thrive for multiple years, growing to 5 pounds or more.

The difference between a wild trout and a stocked trout cannot be determined merely by the naked eye. Under magnification, however, a stocked trout’s scales will show more consistent growth rings, similar to that of a tree. The wild trout will have inconsistent growth, due to changing environmental conditions and forage availability throughout the year.

Even discerning anglers will have trouble determining a “triploid” from a rainbow. A triploid looks, swims, and feeds like a rainbow, but it cannot reproduce. Triploids, Kirn noted, are part of an experiment over the last few years to stock sterilized fish, with the goal to reduce genetic interaction between wild and stocked fish.