trouts

Trouts are a group of freshwater fish in the family Salmonidae. The common name covers several species that inhabit cool streams, rivers, and lakes, often with migratory forms that move between freshwater and coastal marine environments. True trouts are usually placed in the genera Salmo and Oncorhynchus. Notable species include the brown trout (Salmo trutta), rainbow trout and steelhead (Oncorhynchus mykiss), and cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii). Brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) is commonly called a trout in North America but is technically a member of the char genus Salvelinus; it is not a true trout in the strict sense.

Trouts vary in size from small stream dwellers to large migratory forms. They prefer cold, well-oxygenated water, often with gravelly bottoms for spawning. Most trouts begin life as eggs laid in gravel nests, or redds, hatch into alevins, then fry, and progress through parr stages before reaching adulthood. Growth and spawning cycles differ: many are anadromous, migrating to the sea before returning to freshwater to reproduce, while others remain in freshwater their entire lives.

Economically and culturally, trouts are valued for sport fishing and, in some regions, for commercial fisheries and aquaculture. Rainbow trout and Atlantic salmon are widely farmed. Conservation concerns for various trout species include habitat degradation, water quality, overfishing, and invasive species. Management practices often focus on habitat protection, hatchery supplementation, and sustainable angling regulations to preserve populations.