srbtc presentation to gbtu, boston ma, jan 2015
TRANSCRIPT
The Sea-Run Brook Trout Coalition is a non-profit organization established for the purpose of protecting and restoring sea-run brook trout
populations and the coastal watersheds that they depend upon
Founded in 2011
Board of Directors
Michael Hopper, President
Warren Winders, Co-Founder
Geoffrey Day, Co-Founder
Prudy Burt, MV Coordinator
Dwayne Shaw, Maine Coordinator
Scientific Advisory Committee
Andrew Danylchuk, Umass Amherst
Andrew Whiteley, Umass Amherst
Ben Letcher, US GS, Turner’s Falls
Steven Hurley, Mass Wildlife
Tim Purinton, Mass DER
Brendan Annett, Buzzards Bay Coalition
Present SRBTC ProjectsStream Monitoring in:
ConnecticutLong Island, NYMartha’s Vineyard
Microchemical Analysis in Maine
Fresh Brook Restoration, South Wellfleet
Common Garden Experiment, Umass
Long Term Objectives
Coordination with TU National Assessment
Full Time Restoration Coordinator
Executive Director
Interpretive and Biological Center
Brook TroutSalvelinus fontinalis
Our native trout speciesActually a charr! (brook charr)Coldwater (<70 F) habitat is criticalPreferred Temperature 52 to 56 F
YOY Brook Trout - September
Average Growth of Massachusetts Stream Brook Trout
• Age 1 - 4 inches• Age 2 - 6 inches• Age 3 – 9 inches
Brook Trout spawning area in the Quashnet RiverIn areas with springs and seeps, at edge of steep slopes
Wild Brook Trout Streams of Massachusetts
• Brook Trout Populations greatly reduced in abundance in Eastern Massachusetts
Abundant Marine Food Resources Lead To Excellent Growth Rates And A Large Size
Silvery sheen (April salter)
Southeastern Massachusetts was a famous brook trout fishing destination
Daniel WebsterDr. Jerome V.C. Smith
John Rowe
Theodore Lyman III President Grover Cleveland
Q uas hnet R iver T ro ut Invento ry S ectio ns 1- 4
0
50
100
150
200
250
1985 1987 1989 1991 1993 1995 1997 1999 2001 2003 2005 2007
Brook
Brown
Quashnet River Trout Inventory
Genetic research indicated brook trout in each salter
stream different from each other and very different from Sandwich hatchery
strain (Annett 2005)
Annett, Brendan J. 2005. Conservation genetics of remnant anadromous brook trout, Salvelinus fontinalis, populations at the southern limit of their distribution: population structure and impacts of historic stocking. M.A. Thesis. Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts. 52 pp.
Annett, Brendan, Gabriele Gerlach, Timothy L. King and Andrew R. Whiteley. 2012. Conservation Genetics of Remnant Coastal Brook Trout Populations at the Southern Limit of Their Distribution: Population Structure and Effects of Stocking. Transactions of the American Fisheries Society141(5):1399-1410.
PIT Tags(Passive Integrated Transponder)
• Allow Unique ID• 50 year life span• Glass encapsulated• Small, low impact on
fish• Biomark
TX1411SST, 134.2 Khz, 12.50 mm x 2.07 mm, 0.102 g)
• Relatively low cost ($2.50 -5.00 each)
Quashnet River Stationary PIT Antennas
Placed November 5, 2007
•Tag #•Date/Time•Travel •Direction• Weekly Battery Changes- at head of tide
- double antenna System
Childs and Quashnet River
Antennas
Childs River Antenna
Quashnet River Antennas 1 and 2
Quashnet River Antenna 2.5
Quashnet River Antenna 3
SE Mass PIT Antenna Hits (And Number of Tagged Fish Detected)
River(# antennas)
start date
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 Total (includes
2013 to date)Quashnet
(2) Nov 2007 +
(1) June 2009
542(53)
2,285(93)
8,311(190)
5,069(241)
9,632(224)
12,310(264)
39,471(864)
Red Brook(2) Nov. 2008
+(1) July 2012
775(47)
5,919(100)
11,226(139)
6,199(154)
15,917(384)
40,936(753)
Childs(1) June 2010
4,657(62)
1,013(26)
2,608(37)
8,379(139)
A wild brook trout from the Quashnet River
Tagged 09/19/2007 -165 mm (2006 yearclass)
• Recaptured 09/24/2008 - 197 mm• Recaptured 09/21/2010 - 347 mm• 727 Days at Large, 15 antenna hits
between 09/26/2009 and 09/19/2010
• Went to tidewater once July 30 to 31, 2010
Largest recaptured PIT tagged brook trout from the Quashnet River 09/21/2010
Tag# 985.121003981009
Childs River Falmouth/Mashpee
Brook Trout Restoration
• September 2006 Surveys
• No brook trout reproduction but occasional wanderers
• Coldwater habitat seemed to be suitable
• Lacked brook trout broodstock
19 trout moved PIT tagged Adult fish (145 - 249 mm) Included 3 recaptured trout
Brook Trout Transplantation to Childs River From Quashnet River June 4, 2008
2nd Transplant May 21, 2009 - 29 Brook Trout (145-249 mm ) 3 Recaps Third Transplant May 18, 2010 - 37 Brook Trout
(148-295 mm) 6 Recaps
Brook Trout Reproduction Confirmed by Electrofishing in
March 2009• 7 young-of-year brook
trout• Mean length = 35 mm
(range 32 – 39 mm)Successful
reproduction documented
each year from
spawning in 2008-2012
June to November 2008
April 2009 to July 2009
Transplanted June 2008
Quashnet RiverRoute 28 Antennas
Brook Trout Homing MovementBrook Trout Homing Movement #7245232 - 174 mm#7245232 - 174 mm
• Released into Childs River June 4, 2008
• Headed upstream on Quashnet River 11/25/08
• Several detections in March and April 2009 at Route 28
• Located back in Childs on July 27, 2009!
• One fish travelled from Quashnet River to Childs river between Nov 2011 and June 2012
• Another fish travelled from Childs to Quashnet River (Tagged Sept 2009, detected Nov 2009 in Quashnet)
Project Partners and Funding
Council and TU National $ 65,000Red Brook Fund $ 50,000 Genetic (Brendan Annett) $ 10,000 American Rivers $ 250,000 AD Makepeace (site work) $ 50,000 DER $ 150,000SEMATU $ 8,000Embrace-A Stream $ 16,000CWRP $ 5,000 MET $ 45,000 USFWS $ 20,000 SRBTC/Patagonia $ 12,000 CC TU $ 3,000 TU/NOAA $ 25,000 Manomet Center $ 20,000 GBTU $ 15,000
Total $ 744,000
Results X 10
418 acre Red Brook WMA $ 400,000 Hal Lyman bequest to TTOR $ 200,000 Red Brook Headwaters purchase $ 3,500,000 Purchase 597 acres AD Makepeace $ 2,800,000
TOTAL TO DATE $ 6,900,000
Thank You to GBTU and MA DFW
• This presentation was presented in Jan 2015 at the Greater Boston Chapter of Trout Unlimited
• Many of these slides were originally prepared by Steve Hurley, Southeast District Fisheries Manager, Mass Division of Fish and Wildlife