Brook trout on decline in eastern USA, study finds
From USA Today:
A three-year study of brook trout populations concludes that the popular sport fish has disappeared or markedly declined in nearly half of the eastern U.S. areas where it once thrived…“Brook trout are the canary in the coal mine when it comes to water quality,” said Gary Berti of Trout Unlimited in a statement. “Declining brook trout populations can provide an early warning that the health of an entire stream, lake or river is at risk.”
Once plentiful in streams and rivers from Maine to South Carolina, brook trout — or “brookies,” as they’re known to anglers — have been greatly reduced by development in the eastern USA. Large populations remain in just 5% of the areas they inhabited before colonization of the United States, notably in Maine and the mountains of Vermont, New Hampshire, New York and Virginia.
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