Tailwater trout fisheries provide popular and unique opportunities for anglers across the southeastern USA but often suffer from high mortality and low returns to creel. The Sipsey Fork tailwater in Alabama provides such an opportunity and is stocked monthly with Rainbow Trout Oncorhynchus mykiss. However, a recent creel survey found that less than 25% of fish stocked each month were harvested, with the fate of remaining fish unknown. Thus, movement patterns and fates of four cohorts of stocked Rainbow Trout were examined in the Sipsey Fork using radiotelemetry. Ninety-two tagged Rainbow Trout travelled an average of 5.8 km (SE = 0.7 km) away from their stocking location. Dam operation rarely appeared to influence trout movement. However, tagged Rainbow Trout rapidly dispersed below where most angler access was located; more than 40% of fish locations were found in this area by 3 weeks poststocking in three of four cohorts. Overall, only 30% of tagged Rainbow Trout remained alive 5 weeks after stocking. Rainbow Trout survival during this 5-week period ranged from 11% to 74% across cohorts, and those stocked in January exhibited greater survival than those stocked in June or October. Factors affecting trout movement and mediating Rainbow Trout survival may include Striped Bass Morone saxatilis predation, water temperature, and dissolved oxygen concentrations during certain times of the year. Efforts to mitigate such factors by altering stocking schedules could increase longevity of stocked Rainbow Trout and therefore maximize availability of fish to anglers. However, the propensity of stocked fish to migrate below the area of public access will continue to limit catch and harvest from this fishery.

中文翻译：

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阿拉巴马尾水中放养虹鳟鱼的持久性和扩散

尾水鳟鱼渔业为美国东南部的垂钓者提供了受欢迎和独特的机会，但往往遭受高死亡率和低回报的问题。阿拉巴马州的 Sipsey Fork 尾水提供了这样的机会，并且每月放养虹鳟Oncorhynchus mykiss. 然而，最近的一项筒子架调查发现，每个月放养的鱼只有不到 25% 被收获，剩余鱼的命运未知。因此，在 Sipsey Fork 中使用无线电遥测检查了四批放养的虹鳟鱼的运动模式和命运。92 条带标签的虹鳟鱼平均距离它们的放养地点 5.8 公里（SE = 0.7 公里）。大坝运行很少会影响鳟鱼的运动。然而，被标记的虹鳟鱼迅速分散在大多数垂钓者通道所在的下方；在四个队列中的三个队列中，在放养 3 周后，在该区域发现了超过 40% 的鱼类位置。总体而言，在放养 5 周后，只有 30% 的标记虹鳟鱼仍然存活。在这 5 周期间，各组的虹鳟鱼存活率从 11% 到 74% 不等，1 月份放养的动物比 6 月或 10 月份放养的动物存活率更高。影响鳟鱼运动和调节虹鳟生存的因素可能包括条纹鲈鱼Morone saxatilis捕食、水温和一年中特定时间的溶解氧浓度。通过改变放养时间表来减轻这些因素的努力可以延长放养虹鳟鱼的寿命，从而最大限度地提高垂钓者的鱼类供应量。然而，放养鱼类在公共区域以下迁移的倾向将继续限制该渔业的捕捞和收获。