There has been a recent flurry of publications describing the potential effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on both commercial and recreational fisheries. As of yet, studies have only provided insights from researchers or industry experts detailing perceived consequences, or from survey data indicating modifications in angler activity levels and behaviours. Using real recreational fisheries data from an ongoing radio telemetry study (2018–present), we explored changes in the relative exploitation rates of rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss; Walbaum 1792) in the Saugeen River, Ontario, a tributary to Lake Huron, before compared to during the pandemic. Restrictions on site access that affected the implementation of important management activities that usually support this popular fishery are also discussed. During the initial phase of complete public lock-downs imposed during spring 2020, angler exploitation rates decreased to half that reported prior to the pandemic. Fishway operations were temporarily suspended and hatchery efforts were interrupted. Once restrictions began to ease in fall 2020, there was an eight-fold increase in overall exploitation rate and a four and a half-fold increase in harvest rate compared to seasons prior to the pandemic. While the full impact of the ongoing pandemic on the Lake Huron fishery is not likely to be fully realized for several years, the potential effects on future return run sizes may need to be considered by fisheries managers monitoring trends in population escapement.

最近有一系列出版物描述了 COVID-19 大流行对商业和休闲渔业的潜在影响。到目前为止，研究仅提供了研究人员或行业专家详细说明感知后果的见解，或来自表明钓鱼者活动水平和行为变化的调查数据的见解。利用正在进行的无线电遥测研究（2018 年至今）的真实休闲渔业数据，我们探索了休伦湖支流安大略省索金河虹鳟鱼（ Oncorhynchus mykiss ；Walbaum 1792）相对开采率的变化，然后进行了比较到疫情期间。还讨论了对场地访问的限制，这些限制影响了通常支持这种流行渔业的重要管理活动的实施。在 2020 年春季实施的全面公共封锁的初始阶段，钓鱼者的剥削率下降至大流行前报告的一半。鱼道作业暂时停止，孵化场工作也中断。 2020 年秋季限制开始放松后，与大流行之前的季节相比，总体开采率增加了八倍，收获率增加了四倍半。虽然持续流行病对休伦湖渔业的全面影响在几年内不太可能完全实现，但监测种群逃逸趋势的渔业管理者可能需要考虑对未来回游规模的潜在影响。