Brook Trout Restoration, Lynn Camp Prong, Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Moore, Steve; Kulp, Matt

National Trout and Salmon Foundation 2008 Native Fish Restoration Grant. Great Smoky Mountains National Park proposes to remove non-native rainbow trout from 12.8 km (8 miles) of Lynn Camp Prong and restore native brook trout to this stream section. The native “Southern Appalachian” brook trout in Lynn Camp Prong are the most threatened population in the Park due to encroachment by non-native rainbow trout and acid deposition. The allopatric population (brook trout only) is limited to approximately 1,000 meters of habitat at the end of trout range in this stream at an elevation of 1,097 – 1,189 m (3,600 – 3,900 ft.). A barrier does not exist to stop the encroachment of non-native rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) from moving into this area. The brook trout population in Marks Creek (a tributary to Lynn Camp Prong) is protected by a natural barrier at 792 m (2,400 ft.). The initial step to address and correct this problem was taken in 2005 when Fintrol® (antimycin) was used to remove hybrid brook trout (southern x northern) from 3.8 km (2.4 miles) of Indian Flats Prong upstream of the barrier at 911m (2,990 ft.). In 2006, GRSM fishery staff collected approximately 200 native brook trout from upper Lynn Camp Prong and released them into the restored section of Indian Flats Prong. Brook trout from this stream may serve as one of the source stocks for Lynn Camp Prong when the remaining 12.8 km (8 miles) of that stream is restored for Southern Appalachian brook trout. The Park’s Fishery Management Plan and the Tennessee Brook Trout Conservation Strategy identify restoration as a high priority for the protection and conservation of native brook trout in the State. The successful completion of this project will help insure that the management objectives for both agencies are moving forward. Additionally the project will help meet a goal of the National Fish Habitat Action Plan (NFHAP) and the Eastern Brook Trout Joint Venture (EBTJV) by restoring brook trout to a watershed in which they have been reduced by over 90%.