Mountain Trout are being jeopardized by unauthorized stocking and relocation, so the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission is asking the public to refrain from the illegal practice of moving inland fish, specifically, mountain trout, to other mountain water bodies.
The relocation of mountain trout and other fish native to mountain waters can result in altering healthy habitats and negatively impacting the agency’s ongoing aquatic conservation efforts. State staff have been encountering newly introduced trout species into various mountain waters during their routing and post-Helene monitoring.
“We are taking proactive measures to prevent those with the best intentions who may think they are helping by restocking certain creeks and streams by sharing the negative impacts of moving fish,” gold-water research coordinator Jake Rash said.
“What may seem ‘helpful’ may cause considerable harm, and undo decades of work by the NCWRC and our partners.”
Rash leads the conservation program for brook trout with the Wildlife Resources Commission. Brook trout is the only native trout species of the three species of trout found in state waters; the other two are rainbow and brown trout.
Due to habitat loss and encroachment of brown and rainbow trout, which has spanned decades, brook trout only occupy a small portion of the waters they once called home.
“When rainbow, brow or hatchery-derived brook trout are moved into waters that have or may have our local native brook trout, it can potentially undo or disrupt years of conservation efforts,” Rash said.
Biologists with the Wildlife Resources Commission are working with partners to bring brook trout back to their native waters across the state. They are doing this by using cutting-edge
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research on genetics and fish populations to help move the right fish to the right places.
Moving aquatic species to other bodies of water can lead to issues such as introducing invasive species, also referred to as aquatic nuisance species.
Rachael Hoch, the state’s inland fisheries assistant chief, leads their program on aquatic nuisance species.
“Transporting live fish from one water body to another can have irreversible consequences,” she said. “The newly stocked fish may carry parasites or other pathogens that can impact the fish species in those waters.”
A stocking permit is required by the state to stock any fish into North Carolina’s public waters.
The Wildlife Resources Commission’s robust trout management program is taking actions to evaluate trout populations across the mountains to identify any potential storm-related impacts.
“Our staff have been monitoring streams and watersheds in Helene’s destruction path to determine its impact to our wild trout. We are finding trout at locations where they were known to exist before the storm, which is encouraging,” mountain region fishery supervisor Doug Belser said.
“We will continue to sample water bodies in western North Carolina for any long-term impacts that may have occurred due to this storm.”
Hurricane Helene ravaged western North Carolina in September 2024, causing flooding and landslides. The Wildlife Resources Commission’s Armstrong State Fish Hatchery in McDowell County, just outside of Marion, sustained significant damage as a result. This led to most of the 600,000 fish of various sizes dying when the storm compromised the water supply to the raceways and hatchery building.
The damage to the Armstrong State Fish Hatchery also delayed renovations to Bobby N. Setzer State Fish Hatchery in Transylvania County. The renovations were originally scheduled to take place this year, but were pushed back to 2026. Impacts from the renovations will lead to a reduction in trout stocking in 2026, 2027 and potentially 2028.
The Wildlife Resources Commission partnered with Native Fish Coalition and the U.S. Forest Service in outreach efforts to inform the public about the dangers of relocating fish. They have plans underway to post signage at access points of bodies of water across the state.
Also to advance trout conservations, the state has maintained a longstanding relationship with Trout Unlimited.
“We are hearing encouraging reports from biologists, guides and our anglers that trout are doing well in many streams. Unfortunately, we are also hearing that some individuals are moving fish from one stream to another, which is not a good idea and unnecessary,” said Bruce Jones, president of the Pisgah chapter of Trout Unlimited.
Trout fishing has a $1.4 billion impact to the state and supports more than 11,000 jobs, according to the Wildlife Resources Commission’s 2023 socio-economic impact research report.
Details: To report illegal fish stocking or any wildlife violation, call N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission Law Enforcement at 800-662-7137.
To learn more about management, stocking schedules and their conservation efforts, visit ncwildlife.gov/fishing/trout-fishing-north-carolina.