Stocked trout don't die

[larkmark]

I have a trophy Golden Rainbow on my wall!
And if stocked fish did not survive then how do you think all our streams are full of wild Browns?

Half the so called wild "trophies" that guys go on about are hold overs.

Not that there is anything wrong with it of course.

I take what I can get and I am happy with it. I like trout. Stocked and wild. Some of my happiest fishing has been on stocked fish. The longer they stay in the better it gets too.

 

[silverfox]

larkmark wrote:
I have a trophy Golden Rainbow on my wall!
And if stocked fish did not survive then how do you think all our streams are full of wild Browns?

Half the so called wild "trophies" that guys go on about are hold overs.

Not that there is anything wrong with it of course.

I take what I can get and I am happy with it. I like trout. Stocked and wild. Some of my happiest fishing has been on stocked fish. The longer they stay in the better it gets too.

I agree on the wild browns. Granted, there might be some locations with wild browns that are descendants of the original loch leven or german browns that were brought over in the 1900's, but I think the majority are simply stream bred from more recent hatchery stockings.

I grew up fishing for stocked trout and wouldn't have the appreciation for wild and native fish if it weren't for that initial experience with stockers. That said, I wish the state was more like 80/20 in terms of wild trout enhancement vs stocking. I think currently it's the opposite.

 

[Vaughn]

This thread has been interesting. I don't seem to have much trouble finding hold over stocked trout in several of the streams I fish. I'm sure it is no coincidence that these stream sections also hold wild trout.

The pics attached are a trout caught in April 2019. I'd be interested in opinions on how long this trout has been in the stream.