Management Briefs: Field Survival of Brown Trout Eggs in a Perforated Incubation Container

Abstract

A different type of container was used to study overwinter survival of eggs of brown trout Salmo trutta in the field. Holes 10 mm or 14 mm in diameter were drilled in 1-cm-thick plastic plates, and a single egg was placed in each hole, Each plate was wrapped in nylon netting and planted horizontally in an artificial redd at a burial depth of 7 or 15 cm. Overwinter survival of eggs was independent of burial depth and hole size, but more plates were washed out from the 7-cm than from the 15 cm depth. Mean survival prior to hatching was greater than 72%. These plates offer a promising way to study survival in natural streams.