Justification and Need

Productive and successful world-class trout fisheries have been created in tailwater reaches below dams of many rivers throughout the United States. Natural trout reproduction is highly variable among tailwaters in the southeastern states, and as a result, hatchery production and supplemental stocking are required in most rivers to maintain the quality of these fisheries. Identifying factors that contribute to natural trout reproduction and early life stage survival may suggest management activities to improve it. A better understanding of the ecological processes involved in trout reproduction in these lotic systems will allow managers to facilitate greater numbers of wild fish, reduce the reliance on stocking hatchery fish, and improve the quality of the fish and fishery. The applications and benefits of this research will lead to biological, economic, and aesthetic benefits to our riverine aquatic resources and those who enjoy them.

Objectives

Research was being conducted to (1) define the reproductive chronology of brown trout in tailwaters; (2) determine at which stage in the early life history of trout the majority of mortality occurs; and (3) identify physical and biotic factors that contribute to survival of early life stages. We adopted an investigative, comparative approach among several tailwater reaches of the White River system of Arkansas and Missouri, where effort was allocated in an adaptive manner to yield the most conclusive results.

Management Implications

Economic analyses for 1993 estimated that the White River trout fishery in Arkansas alone provides economic returns of $134 million annually (AGFC, unpublished data). The results of this research will guide management activities to improve the quality of the fishery, while reducing costs. This would be accomplished by reducing the reliance on costly hatchery production and stocking, which meet immediate needs of anglers, but provide no long-term benefit. Management activities guided by the results of this research (e.g., habitat improvements, hydrologic alterations, or refining angling regulations) may facilitate natural reproduction and self-sustaining wild trout fisheries, and thus improve the quality of fish angled and yield long-term biological, economic, and aesthetic benefits.

For details of results, see

Pender, D.R. 1998. Factors influencing brown trout reproductive success in Ozark tailwater rivers. Master of Science Thesis. University of Arkansas, Fayetteville. 146 pages.

Pender, D.R. and T.J. Kwak. 2002. Factors influencing brown trout reproductive success in Ozark tailwater rivers. Transactions of the American Fisheries Society 131(4): 698-717.

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