Brown trout (Salmo trutta) is a saltwater, freshwater, brackish species recorded in the United States. It is found at depths of 0–28 m.
Scientific name: Salmo trutta · Water: Saltwater, Freshwater, Brackish
Size: up to 100 cm
The brown trout (Salmo trutta) is the most widely distributed species of the salmonid genus Salmo, a carnivorous fish native to Europe, western Asia and parts of North Africa, and it has three main ecotypes — the riverine morpha fario, the lake-dwelling morpha lacustris and the sea-run, anadromous morpha trutta. All three spawn in fresh water over gravel beds in headstreams, and all are highly adaptable, with a slender body, a large mouth armed with zig-zag vomerine teeth and dark and red spots that do not extend onto the tail. It was introduced to the United States as a game fish using stock from Scotland and Germany and is now one of the country's most important freshwater quarry, celebrated in Michigan, where Tom Healy's 41.45 lb fish from the Manistee River system set a state record in 2009, and pursued in tailwaters, spring creeks, large rivers and lakes across the country. American anglers fish it mainly by wading or from the bank and by drift boat, on flies, spinners and bait; common names in the US include brownie and, for the sea-run form, sea trout. No single documented US fishing season applies.
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