Chars

Lake trout —also called togues or mackinaw trout —are the largest of all trout. The normal maximum is about 60 pounds (27 kg), but some individuals weigh more than 100 pounds (45 kg). Their natural range is the northern United States and Canada, but they have been introduced into cold lakes elsewhere. In the northern part of their range lake trout inhabit streams connected to lakes. Lake trout are gray, greenish-blue, or bronze, with pale spots on their bodies and fins. The female does not make a redd.

By 1961, lake trout in the Great Lakes had been almost totally destroyed by the sea lamprey, which had entered the lakes after completion of the Welland Canal in 1829. Efforts to control the lamprey population met with some success, but trout are still killed in large numbers. Lake trout are regularly released from hatcheries into the lakes to replace those killed by lampreys.

Brook trout, native to the American f coast from near the Arctic Circle to Georgia, have been introduced to suitable habitats in other parts of America and the Old World. These trout are olive-green or brown on the back, which is often marked with dark, wavy lines. The sides are mottled with pink or red spots surrounded by pale blue. At spawning time, the fins and bellies of males turn orange or red and the leading edge of each lower fin is white followed by black. Brook trout are also called speckled trout or squaretails. Sea-running varieties are often called salters. Brook trout weigh an average of 1 to 4 pounds (450 g to 1.8 kg), with record weights of about 14 pounds (6.4 kg).

Dolly Vardens, or bull trout, range from Japan to Alaska and south to northern California. Sea-running varieties are silvery with dark, wavy markings on the back. In mountain streams Dolly Vardens are spotted with red. Large lake-dwellers are silvery with yellow spots. The average weight in streams is generally less than one pound (450 g), while lake-dwellers and sea-runners often weigh more than 15 pounds (6.8 kg). Dolly Vardens feed on spawn and small fish, rodents, frogs, and birds, and are regarded as destructive to other trout and salmon.

Trout belong to the family Salmonidae. True trout are of the genus Salmo. The rainbow trout is O. mykiss; steelhead are Salmo gairdneri; the cutthroat, S. clarki; the brown, S. trutta; the golden, S. aguabonita. Chars are of the genus Salvelinus. The lake trout is Salvelinus namaycush; the brook, S. fontinalis; the Dolly Varden, S. malma.