Brook Trout Salvelinus fontinalis in southern Appalachian Mountains streams of the USA occur at the southernmost portion of their native range, and occupy small, isolated, and low-productivity headwater streams. The existing standard weight (Ws) equation is applicable only to Brook Trout > 120 mm total length (TL), but many individuals in the region are smaller than this minimum size threshold due to their habitat characteristics. Here, we developed a new Ws equation for Brook Trout in southern Appalachian Mountains streams using length-weight data on 72,502 individuals. The weighted quadratic empirical-percentile method minimized length-related bias in relative weight compared to the regression-line-percentile and weighted linear empirical-percentile methods. The proposed Ws equation was: log10W = -3.364 + 1.378 x log10L + 0.397 x (log10L)2, where W was weight (g) and L was TL (mm). The new equation characterized body condition of Brook Trout in southern Appalachian Mountains streams more accurately than the existing equation.

Brown Trout Salmo trutta are a popular sport fish, and numerous populations that are unable to successfully reproduce are maintained with supplemental stockings in waters with habitat that can support individual survival (e.g., appropriate thermal refuge). Long-term management of these populations requires understanding of their population dynamics to determine harvest restrictions and stocking rates. The objective of this research was to describe population dynamics of a tailrace Brown Trout fishery using an integrated population model (IPM) that incorporates monitoring data and low-cost batch mark-recapture data. Further, we evaluated the relationship between water temperature and survival. We hypothesized that annual survival would be lower at high water temperature. Additionally, we used the IPM to project the Brown Trout population based on two different management scenarios (no minimum length limit with seven-fish bag limit and 356-mm-TL minimum length limit with two-fish bag limit). Management outcomes explored include total population size, age frequencies, and length indices. The results of this study suggested that recreational harvest and water temperature were the two main factors influencing the Brown Trout population. Water temperature was found to be a major factor in determining survival of Brown Trout. Simulations under various minimum length limits indicated the minimum length limit of 356 mm TL and a two-fish bag limit will substantially increase the population size but with a reduction in length indices. Integrated population models have been applied historically to large systems with significant amounts of data. Estimates of survival and detection are important components of an IPM; to our knowledge, the IPM used here is the first to integrate batch mark-recapture data to estimate these key parameters. The data and modeling approach used here demonstrate the value of using novel statistical methods to make the most efficient use of low-cost survey data.Having been introduced outside of their native range, Brown Trout Salmo trutta are a popular sport fish throughout the world. They are not native to the Appalachian Mountains, but numerous fishable populations are sustained via supplemental stockings in streams that provide appropriate habitat. The coolwater and coldwater discharges from dams provide the unique habitat Brown Trout require to survive and, in some cases, successfully reproduce. The importance of these fisheries to the public has been evaluated by several states, and it was determined that southeastern trout anglers target these resources frequently and generate significant economic

The North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission has used coded wire tags to mark fish. We evaluated coded wire tags placed at three different anatomical locations (left cheek, right cheek and snout) in brown trout (Salmo trutta) fingerlings (range of mean annual total lengths ¼ 81.31-101.89 mm) prior to stockings (10,000 fish per tagging location). We determined the probability of tag retention at zero, 87 and 176 days posttagging across mean fish lengths. Anatomical tagging location influenced the probability of a fish being tagged. At all evaluation periods and for all mean sizes, brown trout fingerlings tagged in the left cheek had higher probabilities of being tagged than other positions of tags, with snout tags performing the worst. Intra-location comparisons revealed a decline in tag retention across temporal scales. Days posttagging had a negative effect on probability of tag retention, while length had a positive effect on the probability of tag retention. Our results indicated that the likelihood of a tag being present at 176 days was influenced by position of tag and initial tagging success more so than length or days posttagging. Although tag retention was generally high across all tag positions, differences in retention revealed the need to refine the tagging procedure. In addition, the underperformance of coded wire tags placed in the snout suggested that alternative marking locations should be explored.