New Hampshire Temporary Stocking Suspensions an Opportunity not an Emergency...
A stocked brook trout from a White Mountains region stream with a well documented robust wild native brook trout population…
For a state with immense wild native brook trout potential, New Hampshire is oddly reliant on and accepting of stocking, and has been for generations. This includes stocking over wild native brook trout, and often with nonnative rainbow trout or brown trout. And in many cases, fish stocked in one place end up on top of wild native brook trout in another place.
The lack of support for wild native brook trout in New Hampshire is not unexpected as stocking and nonnative trout have been the rule not the exception in the state for longer than many reading this have been alive. Most popular trout waters in the state are either stocked and/or nonnative fisheries. This includes almost all lakes, most ponds and rivers, and many streams.
While progress has been made over the last few years in regard to suspending stocking over wild native brook trout on small streams, there has been very little positive change in regard to rivers and small ponds. Unfortunately, once we start stocking a body of water in New Hampshire it is very difficult to get it stopped, even when the data says that stocking is unnecessary.
NFC Executive Director Bob Mallard fishing a stocked White Mountains region backcountry pond…
There are just three formally designated wild brook trout ponds in New Hampshire. Two more ponds are supposed to see stocking suspensions in 2025. And while there are a few other wild brook trout ponds without formal designations, most brook trout ponds in New Hampshire are stocked and have been for decades.
A hatchery in New Hampshire was recently temporarily closed due to effluent violations. As a result, NH Fish & Game has not able to meet their annual stocking quota for the last several years. The situation has not improved and more temporary cuts will need to be made in 2025. This includes a temporary suspension of stocking on roughly 50 backcountry brook trout ponds in the White Mountains region.
Many stocked backcountry ponds in New Hampshire’s White Mountaina region haven’t been surveyed in years. In many cases, based on the size of the fish encountered, and the fact that they stock mostly fingerlings, the brook trout are clearly holding over. This means that the habitat is suitable for year-round survival. Is it possible that some of these ponds may be able to support some level of natural reproduction as well?
In two cases NFC is aware of in New Hampshire, ponds that were stocked with brook trout for decades reverted to self-sustaining fisheries once stocking was suspended. One is a formally designated wild brook trout pond. The other has been ignored and left with no protection from angler exploitation. Are these situations unique, or could there be more such ponds in New Hampshire?
NFC believes that there are other backcountry ponds in new Hampshire that could support wild brook trout fisheries if managed accordingly. This would require a suspension of stocking and imposing whatever tackle, bag, and length limits are necessary to protect the wild native brook trout. Currently, while many of these waters have a fly fishing only restriction, there is a 5-fish daily limit and no length limit.
Opportunity not Emergency…
While a local business owner and spokesperson for NH Trout Unlimited has declared the reduction of nonnative brown trout stocking on a popular local stretch of river an “Emergency,” and has made a public plea to help raise money to privately stock it, NFC sees these temporary stocking suspensions as a unique opportunity to try to lobby for permanent stocking suspensions where it is being done over wild native fish.
NFC believes that establishing wild brook trout fisheries and reducing stocking should be a top priority for New Hampshire Fish and Game. In addition to the cost of stocked fish, New Hampshire’s remote brook trout ponds are stocked via helicopter which is an expensive proposition. And while the state has a glut of stocked brook trout ponds, there is a notable shortage of wild brook trout ponds.
The temporary suspension of stocking on New Hampshire’s remote brook trout ponds provides a once in a generation opportunity to take a close look at these waters to see is there is evidence of natural reproduction. Last stocked in June 2024 with fingerlings, the stocked fish would be 4-5-inches or larger. Anything less than 5 inches is likely to be a wild fish.
“Without a citizen science volunteer effort we will inevitably fall well short of what we should be doing in regard to taking advantage of this once in a generation opportunity to decrease stocking and create more wild natgive brook trout pond fisheries...”
Confirming natural reproduction of brook trout in remote ponds would be relatively easy. It would allow New Hampshire Fish and Game to extend the stocking suspension another year or two, impose some temporary protective regulations, and see what happens. We do not need to show the abundance of wild brook trout to do this, just their presence.
If we fail to do everything we can to try to identify natural reproduction of brook trout in the remote ponds slated for stocking suspensions in 2025, we will miss a once in a generation opportunity to save sportsmen money, create more self-sustaining brook trout pond fisheries, and do what is economically and ecologically the right thing to do…
“With 50 waters to look at and limited staff at NHFG, and the loss of the early season, I’d be surprised if we could get to half of the waters we should be looking at...”
New Hampshire Fish and Game does not have the resources or time to to survey all of the remote stocked brook trout ponds where stocking will be suspended in 2025. While they cannot afford to do so, those who foot the bill to stock these waters can't afford them not to do it. And those who might fish these waters if they were not stocked should be given the opportunity to do so.
Unfortunately, New Hampshire Fish and Game rejected a proposal by NFC to conduct a volunteer survey of the remote brook trout ponds that will experience temporary stocking suspensions in 2025. The plan was to provide a list of affected waters, recruit anglers and others to sign up to survey them, and have folks angle, video, or visually inspect the respective waters to try to confirm the presence of juvenile brook trout.
The idea is simply to provide NHFG with evidence of natural reproduction so additional testing can be done to determine if a cessation of stocking is warranted. You would think that this is something we would all like to see as it saves money in fish, transportation - trucks and copters, while creating something that NH does not have a lot of - wild native brook trout ponds.
And while it is not dead, NFC has been unable to work out the details that would allow board members to use non-lethal minnow traps, seining nets, and cast nets to try to capture and photograph juvenile brook trout. At this point, delays in getting formal approval are putting this part of the proposal at risk as well due to the short season on these waters.
It’s time to think out of the box and embrace and encourage volunteer efforts where people are willing to do what NHFG can’t do on their own so that we do not miss this once in a generation opportunity to save money and promote wild native brook trout in the New Hampshire’s backcountry…