Last Known Stocking

[Zeke Kuehn]

I think you might have something wrench. The fish look like regular rainbows to me when I catch one of any size. The small ones look different; however I have never fished for wild trout except for in Crane. So the beautiful colors on the little guys may be just something that is common to all rainbow fingerlings.?

[Andrew324]

Sorry had work all day and needed to edit a 20+ page paper for a research group, and this post I couldn't type at at work anyway.

So I developed an interest in the rainbows in Crane (I mean who doesn't? The little wild trout in Missouri's spring creeks are fascinating, like caves, and all the other glorious stuff Missouri has) and wanted to know more about these fish.

Chris Vitello in the Conservationist apparently says the last stocking was in the teens or 1920.

Another MDC Fisheries Report also compiles a list of stocking records from Neosho Federal Fish Hatchery, the Missouri Fish Commission, and Missouri Conservation Commission. It lists the last recorded stocking of rainbow trout in Crane Creek from Neosho at 1915. (Turner, 1979) Eggs were purchased from the McCloud River Station during this time period.

Reproduction of rainbow trout in Missouri streams was first reported in Spring River (sw mo) and the Meramec. In 1883, the superintendent of the Neosho Federal Fish Hatchery also reported that rainbow trout were reproducing in Crane Creek (Turner, 1979).

As many others already mentioned, MDC did experiment with Redband trout from Montana in the 1980's, but the only reported study areas for these fish was in the Meramec and a spring branch of Big Buffalo Creek south of Versailles (Turner, 1987) Addtionally, I have heard/read that it was in the 1990's that the MDC actually collected genetic material from the Crane rainbows (sperm I think, haha).

Sequiota Park in Springfield actually used to be a rainbow trout hatchery. Man that would be cool if that were still the case!

Anyway, the fish in the stream are from the McCloud river area yes everyone knows this. It is estimated that for every 1,000 trout eggs deposited (two or three redds), only three trout will live 4 years or longer. Thats a 95+ percent rate of death. (Turner, 1987) Survival increases the older the fish gets (we all hear stories of those smart big fish).

What makes the rainbows in Crane special is not their pureness, but their genetic diversity. The original McCloud River rainbow trout consisted of two forms - an andromous steelhead trout and resident rainbow trout. (Behnke, 2007). So really the fish in Crane are a mixture of those fish: some existing steelhead/coastal rainbows, resident rainbows, and "primitive" redbands of that region. Some of the "primitive" "McCloud River Redband" were examined by Benhke in small tiny tributaries of the McCloud river, in portions which are geographically isolated now due to glaciation. The whole history behind the McCloud rainbow is quite interesting and full of unknown parental genetic sources. It might not be precise to refer to the rainbows in Crane as McCloud's but hey I'm like wrench, whatev you know?

There are several streams which were stocked earlier/around the same time as Crane, but maybe not all with the same fish. And like a lot of other people on the forum might like to think, I think of all the creeks as having their own stream-bred strains.

What I have always liked about the rainbows in Crane is that I identify with them. They like me, are locals and were born in Missouri, but we ain't native.

References

Turner, S. "Life History of Wild Rainbow Trout in Missouri" Missouri Department of Conservation. May 1, 1979

Turner, S. "An Evaluation of Redband Trout in Missouri Waters" Missouri Department of Conservation. Sept 15, 1987

Behnke, R. J. "About Trout: the best of Rober J. Behnke from Trout Magazine" Connecticut: The Lyons Press (2007)

Behnke, R. J. "Trout and Salmon of North America" New York: The Free Press (2002)

[fishinwrench]

Ok this is getting increasingly interesting to me now that you mentioned the Big Buffalo stocking. I personally knew a person that was involved in that project, he has since passed away and I never knew that they were Redbands....just assumed they were "just rainbows", and I'm not so sure that he even knew exactly what they were or where they came from originally (he didn't even fish, ever).... but all of this ties in together because he worked at the Neosho hatchery before taking charge of the fish breeding at Troutdale ranch. Your info (excellent by the way) shows that the Meramec and Big Buffalo were the only "study areas" but I know (almost 100% certain) that a little spring creek known as Alcorn hollow in Camden county and the fenced-in Spring branch in Gravois mills also recieved fish from that very same batch that was put into Big Buffalo. Whether those were considered "study areas" or not I can't say, but I remember when that was going on.

I guess what this boils down to is that undisclosed, or unrecorded stockings have and do take place. There are trout in HaHaTonka spring that nobody seems to know anything about also....supposedly no recorded stockings since the castle burnt down.

[Chief Grey Bear]

http://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache:vnwMHh7_hDoJ:mdc4.mdc.mo.gov/Documents/11939.pdf+spencer+turner+crane+creek&hl=en&gl=us&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEESiHsgvnfoGKBitjGcvUkp2tgcv1ODk2ghd5abMiTcARVJad0WqxtqX3BV92HEFXH4J8_sQjCalqt3KFAddPZid_CykHIb7ROUpE_xgCOUb1uCVwVgfIb3AHToDAAWWq7kQLAV6t&sig=AHIEtbQwvFsRASCZ3IXURZAPm2VfTovNzA

I have posted this here before and do so again for a little refresher. Very good info.

There are and have been lots of unrecorded stockings of trout over the years by private individuals thoughout the Ozarks. It was very common in the early part of the 1900's. Some were able to survive continue to reproduce and others were not so lucky.

[Andrew324]

This thread is turning into "Fishyleaks"

I scannedthe Turner fisheries reports and they are available for viewing on Google Docs:

Life History of Wild Rainbow Trout in Missouri

An Evaluation of Redband Trout in Missouri Waters

The McCloud Rainbow From Behnke's "About Trout"

Rainbow Trout Literature Review by S. Turner

Natural Reproduction of Rainbow Trout in Missouri Part 1

Natural Reproduction of Rainbow Trout in Missouri Part 2

The creek that was near Big Buffalo was called Pole Hollow Creek wrench if that rings a bell. Hope some of this information is of interest to people on the forum.

[ollie]

I will have to ask Dave over at the hatchery next time I see him, although Mr Heinz the previous manager would more than likely know more about this since that was his time period. I agree that many trout stockings are not documented so it is very possible it has been stocked in the past. The Neosho Hatchery has reared many different species in it's existance. Smallmouth, Muskie, Walleye (which they are doing some now), largies, trout, and on and on. At one time they experimented with stocking Indian Creek and several others when I was a kid with trout.

[Wayne SW/MO]

Zeke the fish you're talking about are smolts, the last phase before a mature trout. Steelhead do the same thing only larger. The markings that cover a 4" bow will be the same on a 6" steelhead while the 6" trout will be very close, if not completely, marked like an adult.

While I haven't seen a tremendous number of Crane Creek bows, I've never seen one with any color like a redband.

[drew03cmc]

Wayne, you are right sir. I haven't seen them colored like a redband either.

[laker67]

I don't have an exact date but, I know it was in the 60's.

Laker, the truck you saw was most likely taking either fish or gathered eggs back to the hatchery. It was in this time the MDC was developing what has become to be the Missouri and the Missouri-Arlee strain. The Missouri strain has McCloud lineage.

Thanks to the ingenious thinking at the MDC, the Missouri strain is a autumn spawner with egg production beginning in Oct and running to Dec. The Missouri-Arlee spawns from Jan through March. This keeps us in trout all year round!

This is all a very interesting thread. Thanks to all who have contributed little bits and pieces to some of missouri's trout fishing history. Does anyone recall the lady who raised trout, and lived above wire road?

[crawfly]

This is all a very interesting thread. Thanks to all who have contributed little bits and pieces to some of missouri's trout fishing history. Does anyone recall the lady who raised trout, and lived above wire road?

The only person, I'm aware of, to get fishing access from her was Tom Hargrove. Under the guise of "entomology research" while he was going to SMS. For all others it was "Posted"!