Partners from Canada assist National Fish Hatchery system with Lake Trout Future Broodstock

Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry’s Chatsworth and Normandale Fish Culture Stations staff(left) Riley Hotrum and (right) Steffi Krauseholding an adult lake trout. Riley is a technician with the Upper Great Lakes Management Unit, and Steffi isChatsworth Fish Culture Station’s Operations Coordinator. Photos provided byMatthew Brailey, Manager, Chatsworth Fish Culture Station and Normandale Fish Culture Station,OMNRF.

 

Genoa National Fish Hatchery received lake trout eggs from our partners in Ontario, Canada (Chatsworth and Normandale Fish Culture Stations). Staff from these facilities collected wild adult lake trout from Big Sound, Lake Huron. Eggs were incubated at their facilities until they were eyed and shipped by mail to Genoa National Fish Hatchery. Upon receiving eyed eggs, they were disinfected with iodine and incubated in heath trays at water temperatures between 7-8 °C in an insulated recirculating system in one of Genoa’s regional isolation buildings. Once these eggs hatch the fish will remain on station for a year and a half until they clear three fish health inspections by the La Crosse Fish Health Center (La Crosse, WI). Once all testing comes back clear, the fish will be transferred to their forever home at one of our broodstock facilities (Pendills and Sullivan Creek National Fish Hatcheries, MI) where eventually they will be used to produce eggs for the lake trout hatcheries to grow into yearlings for restoration stocking efforts in Lake Huron.

By: Orey Eckes