Genetic Origin of Wild Brook Trout Populations in the Upper French Broad River System, North Carolina
Brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) is the only salmonid native to the southern Appalachian Mountains. The range of brook trout within this region was greatly reduced during the 20th century due to environmental degradation and the introduction of non-native rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) and brown trout (Salmo trutta). Efforts to supplement trout populations and to repopulate streams in which trout had been extirpated also included stocking of hatchery-reared brook trout, the stocks for which originated from northern populations. Recently, molecular genetic analyses have demonstrated...
