No Golden

[JeffP]

I will post a stream report. Got these 3 this afternoon.

 

[JeffP]

I was actually posting this to see what people thought of the Brookie. While I think it is stocked, I'm not 100% sure. In looking up brookie pics there certainly are a wide variety of colors for stockies and natives. Rainbow I thought was beautiful. Brown a stocky.

 

[silverfox]

I was actually posting this to see what people thought of the Brookie. While I think it is stocked, I'm not 100% sure. In looking up brookie pics there certainly are a wide variety of colors for stockies and natives. Rainbow I thought was beautiful. Brown a stocky.

I'll bite. I'd say stocked. It's a pretty good looking fish though. The "muddy" white-tipped leading edge with the barely visible black line on the anal fin (pelvic too) and the "look" of the pectoral fins suggest stocked. Plus, that spot pattern and general appearance are pretty indicative of a stocked brook trout. Something seems off about the operculum too, which seems to usually be the case on stocked brook trout. I've always wondered what causes that.

I wouldn't trust colors alone at all. That's almost always diet and environment vs wild/hatchery origin. Though in some cases it's very obvious.

i.e. this is a stocked brook trout, but the colors are great. Except for the heron wound.

Then a wild brook trout from MD (no brook trout stocking).

 

[troutbert]

I'll bite. I'd say stocked. It's a pretty good looking fish though. The "muddy" white-tipped leading edge with the barely visible black line on the anal fin (pelvic too) and the "look" of the pectoral fins suggest stocked. Plus, that spot pattern and general appearance are pretty indicative of a stocked brook trout. Something seems off about the operculum too, which seems to usually be the case on stocked brook trout. I've always wondered what causes that.

I wouldn't trust colors alone at all. That's almost always diet and environment vs wild/hatchery origin. Though in some cases it's very obvious.

I agree that it's a stockie:

Pectoral fin is a dead giveaway. The other fins look opaque (milky) also.

Size. Few wild brookies are that large. And large wild brookies are typically found in unstocked waters, not in stocked waters.

Poor fitting operculum (gill cover) is common trait of hatchery trout, rarely of wild trout.

Overall color makes it lean to stockie, though color can be tricky. And markings are fuzzy, not sharp.

 

[phiendWMD]

My initial reaction is stocked. It's quite large, very yellow, and not red or blue very much. It's fins aren't that clear either.

 

[Swattie87]

The real looker of the OP’s bunch of photos is the Rainbow IMO. Probably stocked, unless it was from a relatively small handful of locations, but it’s the best looking of the three. Brown and Brookie are obvious stockers IMO.

 

[JeffP]

All 3 were caught out of Middle Creek. Yes, the rainbow is pretty! I caught another brook even bigger, but he fell off while trying to get a picture. The brookie looks duller in the picture than I remember. Fish Commision doesn't stock brookies in Middle. I guess it could be the Lititz Sportsman's club. Few bugs coming off. in the late afternoon. I may head out again tonight if the storms aren't to bad

 

[FarmerDave]

I agree that it's a stockie:

Pectoral fin is a dead giveaway. The other fins look opaque (milky) also.

Size. Few wild brookies are that large. And large wild brookies are typically found in unstocked waters, not in stocked waters.

Poor fitting operculum (gill cover) is common trait of hatchery trout, rarely of wild trout.

Overall color makes it lean to stockie, though color can be tricky. And markings are fuzzy, not sharp.

Dwight, I agree with your assessment, but I've also seen poorly fitting gill cover (btw, thanks for the translation) on natives before on very small infertile freestone streams in NWPA, Those trout had the appearance of being stunted. In fact, I've seen way worse. Big head, exposed gills, skinny body and sub legal size as well. So, I would say it is a sign of stress which could be a result of habitat whether it be overpopulation in a hatchery or an infertile stream. Lets call it a guess.

 

[tomgamber]

I don't care. Putting it back anyway. moving on...

 

[JeffP]

I agree that it's a stockie:

Pectoral fin is a dead giveaway. The other fins look opaque (milky) also.

Size. Few wild brookies are that large. And large wild brookies are typically found in unstocked waters, not in stocked waters.

Poor fitting operculum (gill cover) is common trait of hatchery trout, rarely of wild trout.

Overall color makes it lean to stockie, though color can be tricky. And markings are fuzzy, not sharp.

What should I be looking for on the pectoral fin?

 

[tomgamber]

wear and tear. being sanded down from the concrete raceways.

 

[troutbert]

What should I be looking for on the pectoral fin?

Compare the pectoral fin (and other fins) with the wild brookie that silverfox posted. They look totally different.

The stocked trout typically have fins that are milky/opaque in color.

The wild trout fin is much more transparent. You could read letters through it.

Also compare the edges. And the way the rays, well, radiate, vs more compressed.

Many photos of wild trout are posted on these forums. Look at the fins of those trout vs the one in your photo.

 

[troutbert]

Also, where fish are caught is important to consider.

Middle Creek, a farmland stream that is stocked. You don't mention catching any small brook trout.

Does the stream have a native brook trout at all, even a small one?

 

[troutbert]

Dwight, I agree with your assessment, but I've also seen poorly fitting gill cover (btw, thanks for the translation) on natives before on very small infertile freestone streams in NWPA, Those trout had the appearance of being stunted. In fact, I've seen way worse. Big head, exposed gills, skinny body and sub legal size as well. So, I would say it is a sign of stress which could be a result of habitat whether it be overpopulation in a hatchery or an infertile stream. Lets call it a guess.

Article on short operculum: https://fishhistopathology.com/home/2020/03/13/short-operculum-gross-pathology/

 

[sepafishing]

All 3 were caught out of Middle Creek. Yes, the rainbow is pretty! I caught another brook even bigger, but he fell off while trying to get a picture. The brookie looks duller in the picture than I remember. Fish Commision doesn't stock brookies in Middle. I guess it could be the Lititz Sportsman's club. Few bugs coming off. in the late afternoon. I may head out again tonight if the storms aren't to bad

Definitely the sportsman’s club. Seems like the put in a lot of brookies. The rainbows they stock also tend to look a lot better than the state fish.

 

[FarmerDave]

Thanks for the article. I can say I learned something today. It can be common in fish farms which is why I agreed with your assessment of that fish at the very start of my response, Just to assure you that we are on the same page... I was not disputing anything you said. I was just expressing a personal observation in certain NWPA streams that have issues with PH, metals, nutrition., all of which were listed in the article,

 

[JeffP]

Compare the pectoral fin (and other fins) with the wild brookie that silverfox posted. They look totally different.

The stocked trout typically have fins that are milky/opaque in color.

The wild trout fin is much more transparent. You could read letters through it.

Also compare the edges. And the way the rays, well, radiate, vs more compressed.

Many photos of wild trout are posted on these forums. Look at the fins of those trout vs the one in your photo.

I guess I was always just looking at their condition. If the fins weren't shredded, there was a chance.

 

[JeffP]

Also, where fish are caught is important to consider.

Middle Creek, a farmland stream that is stocked. You don't mention catching any small brook trout.

Does the stream have a native brook trout at all, even a small one?

It is not far from the Segloch. I didn't give any info from the beginning and planned to later, based on what folks said. Too me, it didn't seem far off from what some were saying were wilds from Kettle. With the fact that no one was catching any Brookies in the Segloch, I thought maybe they were spending time in Middle.