Bull Trout question

[Clint_S]

Here's a question for you guys that know more about fish then I do.

Made a hell hike with the family into a little mountain lake that is loaded with bull trout. No exaggeration my daughter caught a fish every cast for a least 10 and probably caught 25 from the same spot. Every fish was almost exactly the same size (10 " +- 1 inch). Now what's keeping these fish at that size or were we just not catching the big guys for some reason. You would think there would be some hogs in there somewhere and if so why didn't we hook some that varied in size one way or another.


http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv133/Stubby_01/bulltrout.jpg

[Jagermeister]

It might be a recently stocked lake. Perhaps a hatchery had some oversized stock and they decided to dump them into a lake that has experienced winter kill recently. The picture seems to be that of a rainbow trout rather than a bull trout. Looking at that white forward edge of the fins, maybe they would be brook trout? Now I have to go look at a fish ID page.

[Ddog]

all sorts of reasons why fish dont grow, a few are: water temperature, if ice off is late and then ice up is early it seriously effects the food source which in turn affects the growing season. food, water body size, amount of fish in water body.

[c.r.hunter]

It might be a recently stocked lake. Perhaps a hatchery had some oversized stock and they decided to dump them into a lake that has experienced winter kill recently. The picture seems to be that of a rainbow trout rather than a bull trout. Looking at that white forward edge of the fins, maybe they would be brook trout? Now I have to go look at a fish ID page.

Clearly a bull trout in the pic. I doubt the province put hatchery bull trout in a hike in lake. Do they even raise bull trout?

[silvercreek20]

definately not a brook trout, doesn't have the orange, yellow halo's on the side, would have to agree though that the lake is probably overstocked and the lack of feed is keeping the size of the fish down.

[bigwhiteys]

In my families old guide area there was a few lakes, that had landlocked populations of Bull Trout, where you would catch them just like that every cast. I have a 13lb'r on my wall and know of some 20+lb'ers that were taken as well...

There was studies done on the one lake, as they wanted to know how the fish got in and were doing so well. I don't know what the outcome was.

Carl

[drakfero]

Do you have any pictures of the trouts you caught? Bull trout needs to go to see..

[butcher]

Definitely not a hatchery fish.

[Brew]

For sure a bull trout. there will be some hogs in there. just have to go deeper for them. try again in early fall when they start to spawn they may be in the shallows were the little guys were. I've been catching bulls at 60 feet lately. biggest was 14lbs and smallest ws 3.7. Sounds like a very fun day. Good luck on your next outing

[308Lover]

Have flown into lakes where the fish were all one size--ice cold water, not too much food--surface feeders mostly, and none bigger than your pic.

[Wild one]

I have been to lakes were the fish don't get very big do to the population is to big compared to the feed available. With out fishing the lake you went to I would not say this is why you did not catch larger fish. What size of lure were you using? because as you can see by your pic bulls are pigs.

[Clint_S]

Lake stocked by a private individual many years ago.
Tried a larger croc with no change in size of fish caught.

With rainbows or cuts I can see all the fish being one size as they are limited to the available food source (insects mainly). With a BT population I would think the food source is unlimited as they are cannibalistic and some of the larger would eat the smaller and there would be range in fish sizes resembling a bell curve. Maybe I just had to get the middle of the lake and go deep although the lake wasn't that large and I could nearly cast to the middle??

[Chuck]

Here's a question for you guys that know more about fish then I do.

Made a hell hike with the family into a little mountain lake that is loaded with bull trout. No exaggeration my daughter caught a fish every cast for a least 10 and probably caught 25 from the same spot. Every fish was almost exactly the same size (10 " +- 1 inch). Now what's keeping these fish at that size or were we just not catching the big guys for some reason. You would think there would be some hogs in there somewhere and if so why didn't we hook some that varied in size one way or another.


http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv133/Stubby_01/bulltrout.jpg

Pretty hard to tell without co-ordinates. Let me know and I'll be better able to say after I check it out. LOL.

[PGK]

Looks like a big-headed fish with not much body. Probably an old fish, so guess that the lake doesn't have an outlet, or if it does, it's seasonal and the area isn't productive. Bulls are piscivorous, they get big eating other fish. If there's nothing for them to eat, they'll stay small like other trout. Looks like that's what you've got here. Pretty unusual circumstance though, would need to know more about the watershed and/or location to be sure.

[Tikka270wsm]

Apparently, trout can only grow to 15-16 inches max if only feeding on insects. I don't know the lake you were fishing but if there are no shrimp,minnows or any other feed to give them adequate protein, the fish will only get so big.
That fish in the picture certainly is a glutten, which leads me to believe that the fish in that lake don't get enough protein to satisfy their hunger. IMO anyways.

[spreerider]

i agree that fish is all head and slim body, usually means lack of food or a short season of lots of food followed by starving all winter.
I know alot of lakes in the coastal mountains that have cutts that look like that all head and no meat, but they are some fun fish to catch as they will attack hard.

[Kevin So]

Doesn't look stocked, the back fin is still on. By the sound of things, there are so many fish and the competition for food is strong, therefore supports the others suggestion of mal nurished. Small guys are always hanging in the swallows.:o Whats the deal with the dead fish head under the fish?

[springpin]

that does not look like a hachery fish. beacause it has its adipose fin. looks kinda like a brook cause of the white line on the fins..but i'm no expert.

[Wild one]

I is a bull and not all stocked fish have a clipped fin

[jml11]

I is a bull and not all stocked fish have a clipped fin

MOST stocked fish DO NOT have a clipped adipose fin! Fin clipping is primarily only used for salmon (Coho) and Steelhead where native and hatchery stocks exist in the same watershed. It's a way to regulate the catch by only allowing the clipped fish to be kept. I don't think I have ever come across non-anadramous trout with clipped fins.

[doubled]

MOST stocked fish DO NOT have a clipped adipose fin! Fin clipping is primarily only used for salmon (Coho) and Steelhead where native and hatchery stocks exist in the same watershed. It's a way to regulate the catch by only allowing the clipped fish to be kept. I don't think I have ever come across non-anadramous trout with clipped fins.


3N trout CAN also have the adipose clipped to identify them as well. These are called triploids and are sterile meaning that they do not go through the spawning stages like a native rainbow would and therefore grow much quicker.

[PGK]

Plus, to my knowledge, the province has never had a bull trout stocking program. Fin clips are only used when someone wants to keep track of a particular group of fish. Most Dragon Lake fish have a clipped fin or marking somewhere, to help determie catchability, growth rate, survival etc to help with deciding on which strains to use in future stockings

[budismyhorse]

kind of late on this thread....

Bull Trout are a slow growing fish until they become large enough to effectively feed on other fish and vertebrate prey.

Once they do become that large (~12 inches) they take right off if they have prey species available.......even their own fry/juveniles count as food to them.

If this is a locked up system with no shiner/minnows/whitefish or other bite-sized fish....they will not grow large like regular fish and become stunted.

Are there creeks flowing in or out of this pond? If so, there should be spawning and then you'll get juveniles....or food fish for adults.

Something tells me they aren't spawning and it is a stunted system.....

[Clint_S]

If they aren't spawning then they would have died out years ago and if they are spawning (which they must be) why aren't they growing big & fat on their own fry? Kind of a catch 22 question.

[budismyhorse]

They can be long lived fish in some cases 10-15 yrs. I have personally counted age rings from land locked fish that were 16 yrs old and 10 inches long. Even a small amount of successful spawning may be enough to keep that population going.

If they aren't spawning in any great numbers the fry produced may not be enough to bump them up to the next level. They need a lot of protein year round to grow large. Like whole kokanee, whole adult cutthroat or whitefish.