Streams that produced wild tiger trout

[wildtrout2]

For those who have caugh wild tiger trout, I'm curious what the population of that stream mostly consists of? Is it primarily a wild brown trout stream with some natives, or a mostly native brookie stream with some wild browns?
The stream I caught my one and only wild tiger on is roughly 98% natives, with very few wild browns. I actually fished it for a couple years (maybe 8 times) and only ever caught natives. Then, out of nowhere I caught my wild tiger. I had never seen, or caught any wild browns and wondered how this could be? After catching the tiger I went another couple years before catching my first wild brown. This was in 2009, and since then I've only caught a total of three browns on this stream.

Curious to hear what others have to say. I'd especially like to hear what FTA has to say (if he sees this thread) on the subject, since he's caught an amazing number of wild tigers.

 

[JSky]

I’ve found them in what was formerly a native brookie stream that is now listed as wild brown and brook. That tells you the browns moved in and are breeding and the brookies are fair game come spawning season. I would assume most any stream in PA that has wild brown and brook would fall into that category. Now you’ve just got to make 10,000 casts to catch one.

 

[Kevin82]

I caught one about 8-9 years ago, it was about 5-6". At the time I'd say the stream was 75% brook trout and 25% browns. Nowadays those percentages seem to have pretty much flipped.

 

[SBecker]

Mine was about 5 inches and caught in a very popular wild brown trout stream with some native brooks as well.

 

[JimKennedy]

Small brown trout creek near the mouth of a tiny brook trout trickle.

 

[ChuckofWagon]

There was an article in the local Tribune Review newspaper about a fellow who has good luck catching them out of the Loyalhanna. But IIRC, he seems to get them in the winter. The rumor is the trout wash down from the Rolling Rock CC trout stream as Rolling Rock raises tiger trout in their private hatchery.

I think the article ask RRCC if they raise tiger trout and the CC said no comment.

 

[5footfenwick]

I’ve caught a few stocked Tiger trout, but never kept track of them.

I believe I’ve hooked and landed 14 wild tiger trout so far.

To be fair I caught 4 the first year I caught one. Just got lucky, and a good boost to my total.

Also I caught the same one 4 times over the course of multiple years from the same hole.

So even though I’ve caught 14, they were only 11 different fish.

Here’s the breakdown on the 14:
2 from stocked class A brookie stream stocked with brookies and browns.

3 from class A brown trout streams unstocked

4 from mixed Class A Brown/Brook stream unstocked

3 from Class A BrookTrout streams unstocked

2 from Natural reproduction streams unstocked

One of the streams is a lot like you described, I’ve never caught a brown trout there. Class A brookie stream. Been fishing it for 30 years and nobody I know ever caught a brown. It was in the first hole up from the mouth and was my biggest so far at about 13”

My Latest one from Late Oct. 2022

This one is from a small trib to a Class A brook trout stream that see’s a small run of spawning river browns. The big browns show up in Oct and November and then leave. They have to travel about 15 miles up a warm creek, then 5 miles up the tiny brookie stream then another mile up the 2 foot wide unnamed tributary. Seems like unless you are above a waterfall, there is always a small chance for a wild tiger trout.
~5footfenwick

 

[Swattie87]

My wild Tiger experiences all come from the same two watersheds. Granted, they’re two of my favorites, and streams I generally fish at least once a year, if not more. So, my catches in these streams may be artificially high versus others as I fish these two streams about as much as any I fish.

Both have Class A survey biomass, but only one is listed as Class A. The other is a STW. I have the survey data on both. The Class A one is an 85 kg/ha stream that is almost exactly 50/50 Brooks/Browns by biomass. The STW is 55 kg/ha or so, and 90/10 Browns, by biomass. (Clearly, it should not be stocked, different discussion for a different thread.)

Anyway, the Class A one produced a Tiger that I caught, and was subsequently caught again by another board member a few months later and a 1/4 mile or so downstream of where I caught it. Confirmed via photos to be the same fish.

The STW one has produced two separate Tigers (one caught by me, and a second caught by two different board members, also confirmed via pictures to be the same fish). And I had a fish flop off at my feet in a trib of this stream that was either a Tiger or a very oddly colored Brown. Pretty sure it was a Tiger, but can’t be 100% sure.

What they have in common…They’re both small, forested freestoners, with good biomass, and both Brook and Brown trout. IMO these are the places to look for them. I’m not necessarily of the opinion that the exact species breakdown matters much, other than that more biomass in general helps…more chances for some rogue spawning.

 

[Dave_W]

Drawing only on previous threads on this topic, I am convinced that wild tigers are more prevalent upstate and are less prevalent in my neck of the woods.

 

[LLR]

stream was around 90-95% native brown trout population

 

[rustbeltwilds]

There was an article in the local Tribune Review newspaper about a fellow who has good luck catching them out of the Loyalhanna. But IIRC, he seems to get them in the winter. The rumor is the trout wash down from the Rolling Rock CC trout stream as Rolling Rock raises tiger trout in their private hatchery.

I think the article ask RRCC if they raise tiger trout and the CC said no comment.

Rolling rock stocks tigers. There quite common on that stream

 

[Ogdonia Ollie]

They seem to be more prevalent the last few years in the smaller mixed brown & brook streams flowing into a large stocked northcentral freestone creek. The largest of them was caught in that stream and a photo appeared an article about tigers in the newsletter of the Susquehanna Chapter of TU. All of them were caught on dries.

 

[salmonoid]

My wild Tiger experiences all come from the same two watersheds. Granted, they’re two of my favorites, and streams I generally fish at least once a year, if not more. So, my catches in these streams may be artificially high versus others as I fish these two streams about as much as any I fish.

Both have Class A survey biomass, but only one is listed as Class A. The other is a STW. I have the survey data on both. The Class A one is an 85 kg/ha stream that is almost exactly 50/50 Brooks/Browns by biomass. The STW is 55 kg/ha or so, and 90/10 Browns, by biomass. (Clearly, it should not be stocked, different discussion for a different thread.)

Anyway, the Class A one produced a Tiger that I caught, and was subsequently caught again by another board member a few months later and a 1/4 mile or so downstream of where I caught it. Confirmed via photos to be the same fish.

The STW one has produced two separate Tigers (one caught by me, and a second caught by two different board members, also confirmed via pictures to be the same fish). And I had a fish flop off at my feet in a trib of this stream that was either a Tiger or a very oddly colored Brown. Pretty sure it was a Tiger, but can’t be 100% sure.

What they have in common…They’re both small, forested freestoners, with good biomass, and both Brook and Brown trout. IMO these are the places to look for them. I’m not necessarily of the opinion that the exact species breakdown matters much, other than that more biomass in general helps…more chances for some rogue spawning.

While tiger trout are not all that common, I happen to be the fortunate board member that caught Swattie's one tiger and Sasquatch caught the other tiger he references, after I caught it. What are the chances of two different tigers connecting back to the same person? The reality is we all probably catch one or more of the same fish as other board members, at times, but tigers are unique enough that they generally get mentioned or posted and we can then easily compare our limited inventory of caught tigers.

I've caught four total - two from the same stream (where I picked up the same one Swattie caught), the one that both I and Sasquatch caught, and one from Donegal Creek. The latter was probably stocked, as it came during a time when the state stocked tigers. But Donegal does have a wild brown trout population and I've caught a lone wild brookie from it as well, so I guess it's possible the tiger could be a wild fish.

I don't think there is a formula for tigers, based on a stream's percentage of one species vs. another, other than having a brown trout momma and a brookie daddy. If you have both present in a stream at the same time and place, there's a chance of a tiger. There are probably some environmental characteristics that would give the nod to a freestone, as there you'd have the greatest chance of brown and brook trout overlapping during spawn.

 

[Wild_Trouter]

The wild Tiger in my avatar here was caught in a Wilderness Designated Stream that much further down in the system is a Class A mixed pop, though in my experience, it's like 90/10 brookies. I've caught several others in PA, MD, VA, and MI over the years. The MD and VA fish were caught out of rivers with predominantly brown trout that had a trib or two with brookies. In MI, I still haven't figured out a particular watershed as it was all wild browns and no brookies that I ever saw or was aware of. I definitely think you ought to play Powerball when you catch one of these guys.

 

[sixfootfenwick]

I've caught a few.
All from streams like you describe.
Most brook with some browns.

 

[brookiefan]

I caught one about 2-3 years ago 8-9 inches. Same deal, mostly brookies ,some browns.

 

[The_Sasquatch]

Welp, everyone else told my wild tiger trout story, so I can't help ya!

Though, there was one experience-the OG Sal (Brian) and I were fishing a very small stream in Northern Lancaster, and he caught one. This is a stream that he fished quite a bit, and never ever caught a single brown. I would also say, it wasn't a stream with a particularly high biomass. Never high enough to make it onto the Class A list, at least. It is heavily forested though.

 

[Troutmeister]

Mine was caught out of a small rocky freestone that's about 98% browns with a very small population of brookies.

 

[Swattie87]

Welp, everyone else told my wild tiger trout story, so I can't help ya!

Though, there was one experience-the OG Sal (Brian) and I were fishing a very small stream in Northern Lancaster, and he caught one. This is a stream that he fished quite a bit, and never ever caught a single brown. I would also say, it wasn't a stream with a particularly high biomass. Never high enough to make it onto the Class A list, at least. It is heavily forested though.

There’s definitely Browns in the bottom end of that now. Not surprising, given what’s happened in its receiving stream.

He caught that fairly high up though right? IIRC.

 

[Ewanflyfish]

Never caught one myself. But i’ve talked to multiple people who’ve caught them out of the lower delaware in fall/winter.