DESCRIPTION - The average length is 10-12 inches but
Brook Trout can be caught measuring up to 21 inches and weighing
4-6 pounds. The largest Brook trout on record was 14.5 pounds and
caught in 1916 in the Nipigon River in Ontario. Breeding males develop
a hook at the front of the lower jaw. Typical coloring is olive-green
to dark brown on the back with silvery sides and pale spotting.
All colors intensify at spawning time.
DISTRIBUTION - The brook trout is native to northern
North America and is widely distributed throughout the maritime
provinces. It occurs in clear, cool, well-oxygenated streams and
lakes.
BIOLOGY - Brook Trout spawn in late summer or autumn
in gravel beds in the shallows of headwaters of streams. The female
digs the redd where she lays 100-5000 eggs depending on her size.
They hatch 50-100 days later. The life expectancy is an average
of five years. The brook trout is carnivorous and feed upon a wide
range of organisms. They have been known to eat their own eggs at
spawning time and even their own young.
RELATION TO MAN - Brook Trout is one of the most popular
game fish in Canada and is fished by artificial fly, spin casting
or live bait.
