Trade Offs

Interesting conversation on Protect Rhode Island Brook Trout Facebook Page

TRADE OFFS: Citing Halverson (2008), Thompson (2013) tells us that more that 130 million trout per year are raised for stocking by federal and state hatcheries. Collectively, this amounts to about 30 million pounds of trout per year. Insofar as it takes 1.2 pounds of feed to produce 1 pound of trout that's about 36 million pounds of pellets. And, menhaden are the principal source of this trout feed. But wait ... isn't menhaden, so rich in fish oils and protein, the preferred natural food source of the striped bass? Yes it is. Round up 100 striped bass fishermen and 97 will say that their striper catch has been steadily declining. Russell (2005) cites studies quantifying this and showing that the girth to length ratio of striped bass has been declining as well i.e. stripers are suffering under-nutrition with the compromise of their immune systems as a secondary consequence, and higher morbidity and mortality following that. Elsewhere on this page we have discussed the direct and indirect negative impacts of trout stocking on wild trout populations. OK, so here's the deal that has been made on your behalf, with or without your knowledge and consent: Hatchery-reared trout, a facsimile of the real thing, are produced en masse with your tax dollars and at the expense of wild and native fish in both the freshwater and the ocean. Is this the deal that you thought you were getting when you purchased your fishing license?