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I am working on a research paper for my global environment class. My Topic is on the effects of the invasion of brook trout on the population of native cutthroat trout in the Rocky Mountains. Does anyone know of any good articles for this topic? Or anyone want to share their knowledge or opinion and give me some good points to work off?

Thank you. I know many of you probably have strong opinions on invasive species because I know I do.

Having a stream taken over by brookies... could be worse.

-Shawn

P.S. I'm of course just making a bit of a joke, Jamie. That's what I usually do when I have nothing pertinent to contribute. It happens a lot.

Have you checked on Web of Science?

Jamie,

One good place to start might be the fish and game departments of those RM states that have planted Brook trout, their reasoning for doing so, and what their current policies (catch limits, etc) are. Do they consider Browns to be "invasive" as well?

Granted, Oregon is not a RM state but, I found it interesting that they have no creel or size limits on Brook trout because they are a non-native species. Yet, this is not the case with Browns which I feel are far more "invasive" than Brookies....

When I was in Michigan my mantra was, "Save a Brookie, eat a Brown"... ;)

Dano

Those are all good places to start. I have not been on Web of Science yet but I sure will be checking it out and I have already begun to do a small amount of research through the Fish and Game Departments... thats actually where I got my thesis.
I know in New York Brookies are a rare commodity in most places and its just crazy to think about that they are like brown trout out in the Rockies. If I come across anything interesting this forum will be the first to hear it.
Thanks for the starting point!

Its funny that here in the east, brookies seem to be the fish that gets bullied by other species, and out west they are the ones who do the bullying a lot of the time, they say that brookies are an excellent indicator of water quality, by the brookies being the invasive species out west it goes to show how excellent the water quality is out west doesnt it. Like what shawn said, I think that it is a good problem to have kind of, even though they are competing with the native trouts.

Brookies in most environments cant out compete yellowstone cutthroat, greenback cutthroat, or bonneville cutthroat. Rainbows interbreeding in the highmountain streams is a bigger threat with these species.

However weststlope cutthroat are weaker on the food chain than even brookies. And they have been reduced from pretty much all of there habitat, except for areas around butte and from there going north and west till you get to Idaho.

Isn't the green back the only "native" trout to much of the west.
Jeff

The greenback is now extinct in Wyoming. I believe Greenback is the one that is now only in CO and endangered itself.

I mainly get yellowstone cutties here in montana, and it is 50/50 yellowstone/bonneville depending where we go when i fish with my dad in wyoming. Although yellowstone is the most common in the state.

I believe to Montana, the only species we had native were westslope and yellowstone cutties, and redband rainbow trout, one of the subspecies of rainbow trout, but one that is threatened/endangered and really small, and bull trout, we also have mountain whitefish and grayling were native here as well.

Westslopes are pretty much only near Butte in any numbers, and i believe up by kalispell as well. They are not to common anymore.

In wyoming they had 6 native cutthroat species and grayling(in the park) and mountain whitefish were native there as well. Yellowstone, Bonneville, Colorado, greenback, westslope(in the park) and snake river cutthroat species.