Coaster Brook Trout Rehabilitation in Canadian Waters of Lake Superior. Challenges and Success

Coaster brook trout Salvelinus fontinalis rehabilitation has been recognized as a high priority among fisheries management agencies in the Lake Superior Basin since 1990 and particularly since the development of a lake-wide rehabilitation plan in 2003.  Remnant stocks of coaster brook trout persist in only a few areas in Lake Superior, one of which being Nipigon Bay, Ontario Canada. This area was renowned for its large brook trout and supported a legendary sport fishery dating back to the 1850’s.  Although brook trout populations still persist in reasonable numbers in the region, they are a fraction of their historical abundance.  In this paper we highlight the progress that the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources (OMNR) has made since the implementation of a protective sport fishing regulation that was applied in 2005, allowing the possession of one brook trout with a minimum length of 56cm.  Ongoing cooperation with management agencies, academia, and stakeholders has lead to successful advances in coaster brook trout rehabilitation, as well as our understanding of their life history characteristics and habitat use in the Nipigon Bay area and its associated watersheds.  This continued cooperation is seen as being essential to making informed, ecosystem based fisheries management decisions into the future.