Interesting facts about Rainbow Trout
British
record: 33lb 4oz
Two main strains of the rainbow exist: the non-migratory strain and the sea going strain or steelhead. They occur naturally from northern South America to Alaska and throughout areas of Austral Asia.
Voracious feeders with a very similar diet to the brown trout including insects, fish and small mammals.
In the wild they spawn after 3 years and the offspring feed on small crustaceans and plant materials for the first two years.
Thereafter their diet goes onto fish eggs, small fry and small mammals. They also feed on salmon carcasses after spawning.
It is regarded as one of the most respected and sought after game fish in Alaska and North America. However, in the UK, the rainbow trout often bears the brunt of insulting remarks. The rainbow is a fine fish and the quality of the farmed fish is purely down to the farmer.
During the early stages of farming in the UK and America when eggs were scarce, often the two strains were mixed and some stocks of farmed fish in the UK can still show urges to go to the sea with the fish taking on a silvery hue.
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