Complete name: Salvelinus fontinalis (Mitchill, 1814)
Taxonomy: Osteichthyes » Chordata » Actinopterygii » Salmoniformes » Salmonidae » Salvelinus fontinalis
Authors: Melanie Josefsson
Last updated: December 20th, 2006

Brook trout, brook charr, sea trout.

Baione fontinalis (Mitchill, 1814)
Salmo canadensis Griffith & Smith, 1834
Salmo fontinalis Mitchill, 1814
Salmo hudsonicus Suckley, 1861
Salvelinus fontinalis
Salvelinus timagamiensis Henn & Rinckenbach, 1925

This salmonid predatory fish has a long, streamlined body with a large mouth that extends past the eye. Colour variations include olive, blue-grey, or black above with a silvery white belly and wormlike markings (vermiculations) along the back. They have red spots on their sides. The lower fins have a white front edge with black and the remainder being reddish orange. The tail fin is square or rarely slightly forked. During breeding time in the fall, male brook trout can become very bright orange-red along the sides.

• Dispersal Mechanisms
  • It has been intentionally released into waters. Once established it reproduces and spreads naturally.
• Reproduction
  • Brook trout reaches maturity after 2-4 years, but this may vary in the invaded area. Spawns in running water in late summer or autumn, depending on latitude and temperature. Eggs hatch in spring. Eggs are deposited in a redd constructed by the female on a gravely substrate.
• Known Predators/Herbivores
  • Food habits vary with age and life-cycle stage. As fry they feed primarily on insect larvae. As adults they feed on a diverse range of animals including worms, leeches, crustaceans, insects, molluscs, fish, amphibians and also small mammals.
• Resistant Stages (seeds, spores etc.)
  • None.

• Native (EUNIS Code)
  • C1: Surface standing waters, C2: Surface running waters, A7: Pelagic water column.
• Habitat Occupied in Invaded Range (EUNIS Code)
  • C1: Surface standing waters, C2: Surface running waters, A7: Pelagic water column.
• Habitat Requirements
  • 0-25°C, range of growth 7-20°C; 65°N to 57°S, 127°W to 151°E.
    Freshwater, brackish water, marine environments.

Intentionally introduced for aquaculture for sport fisheries and for food production. It has escaped from fish farms and has been intentionally released into the wild for sport fishing and as a replacement for depleted native salmonids in acidified waters.

• Native Range
  • eastern parts of North America, eastern Canada from Newfoundland to the western side of Hudson Bay, U.S.A. from the Great Lakes and Mississippi River basins in the west to the Atlantic basin in the east, from Minnesota in the north to Georgia in the south.
• Known Introduced Range
  • It has been introduced to temperate areas all over the world. In Europe it is present in 20 countries from Spain in the south to Norway in the North. It has also been introduced to the western U.S.A., temperate areas of South America, Asia, Africa and Oceania.
• Trend
  • Although stocking with the brook trout is decreasing, the fish is increasing its area through reproduction and secondary spread.

known distribution area (in CGRS grid squares; in countries; along coast)

	eradicated
	extinct
	not present; eradicated
	native distribution range in CGRS grid squares
	native range
	assumed native range
	infrequent distribution
	key distribution area
	not established

• Ecosystem Impact
  • Competes with and predates on native fish such as other salmonids for food and cover. It also predates on amphibians, zooplankton and other invertebrates. When stocked in previously fishless oligotrophic mountain lakes, brook trout alter nutrient cycles and stimulate primary production by accessing benthic sources of phosphorus. The replacement of native salmonids with brook trout has a negative effect on the freshwater pearl mussel Margaritifera margaritifera, as the brook trout cannot serve as host to the glochidiae larvae. The brook trout has genetic effects as it hybridizes with the native brown trout, of which some hybrids are fertile.
• Health and Social Impact
  • Recreational fishing for brook trout may be of social and economic importance for local communities.
• Economic Impact
  • Sport fishing for brook trout has a positive economic effect for local communities, but it is negative if native salmonids disappear.

• Prevention
  • Intentional introduction should be forbidden.
• Mechanical
  • As established populations are difficult and costly to control, further introductions or stocking with brook trout should be avoided. Electrofishing and gill netting can be effective in small, contained environments such as mountain lakes.
• Chemical
  • The use of piscicides such as rotenone can be effective, but pose serious risks to other species.
• Biological
  • Unknown.

The following contributors have provided records in the DAISIE database for this species.

The following experts registered themselves as having knowledge about this species or its family.

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FishBase (2006) Salvelinus fontinalis, Brook trout. FishBase World Wide Web electronic publication. URL: www.fishbase.org/Summary/speciesSummary.php?ID=246&genusname=Salvelinus&speciesname=fontinalis. Cited 28 Nov 2006

Jansson K (2006) Nobanis Invasive Aliens Fact Sheet - Salvelinus fontinalis. From online database of the North European and Baltic Network on Invasive Alien Species. NOBANIS www.nobanis.org. Cited 12 Dec 2006

Lehtonen, H (2002) Alien freshwater fishes of Europe. Pages 153-161 in E Leppäkoski, S Gollasch and S Olenin editors. Invasive aquatic species of Europe: Distribution, impacts and management. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht.

Rask, M, Appelberg, M, Hesthagen, T, Tammi, J, Beijer, U and Lappainen, A (2000) Fish status survey of Nordic lakes: Species composition, distribution, effects of environmental changes. TemaNord 2000:508. Nordic Council of Ministers, Copenhagen

Solarz, W (2006) Speckled brook trout. Alien Species in Poland. Institute of Nature Conservation, Polish Academy of Sciences website. URL: www.iop.krakow.pl/ias/species.asp?198 (Accessed 2006-11-27)

Spens, J, Alanära, A, Eriksson, L-O (2007) Nonnative brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) and the demise of native brown trout (Salmo trutta) in northern boreal lakes: stealth, long-term patterns? Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Science 64:654-664