An annual tradition at Twin Lakes might be changing next year.
Every year, the Alaska Department of Fish &Game (ADF&G) stocks the lake with king salmon just before annual Family Fishing Day in June. Next year, ADF&G biologists are hoping to bring in rainbow trout instead, Fisheries Biologist Kercia Schroeder said.
“In theory, they should survive longer than the king salmon,” Schroeder said of rainbow trout. “They’re more of a typical lake species than the salmon are, and (we’re) hoping that there won’t be any straying because they’re more prone to staying in their resident lakes.”
On Monday, Schroeder and Fisheries Technician Daniel Green dropped 17 traps into the water at Twin Lakes as part of a routine assessment of what’s in the lake. They started making this a regular occurrence in the fall of 2016, now looking to put traps in the water in the spring and fall every year.
“(We) wanted to get some pre-release data prior to the rainbow trout being released,” Schroeder said, “and then we’ll continue sampling after they’re released, so it’ll be about twice a year.”
They’re particularly interested in testing the water this fall in preparation for dropping rainbow trout in the water next year. Schroeder said those at ADF&G aren’t 100 percent certain they’ll drop the trout in next year, but it’s the plan at this point. They usually release the king salmon in May, and hope to drop the rainbow trout at that time too, after doing another survey of what’s in the water.
They also drop traps to monitor wildlife at Dredge Lake, Schroeder said.
King salmon returns have been declining in recent years, particularly in the ocean, and king salmon fishing season was delayed by two months this year due to low projections.
Schroeder said they usually drop around the same amount of traps every time they’ve explored the water, looking for just about anything. In the past at Twin Lakes, they’ve found flounder and sculpin, among other fish, she said. They’ll pick the traps back up today, curious to see what they find.
“We’re looking for anything that’s in here, but hopefully we’ll catch some of the king salmon that were released this spring,” Schroeder said. “We’ll see.”
• Contact reporter Alex McCarthy at alex.mccarthy@juneauempire.com.
