Rain-Bow Chika Bow Wow ;)

Lately I have been getting a lot of questions concerning this time of year and the spawn. Just as March is coming to a wrap, the ‘bows down here are also wrapping up their sexy time. It may be a little late to write about it, but I figured better late than never. As an aspiring Science Teacher, I’d like to consider myself fairly well versed in many facets of the scientific universe. My realm deals with Engineering and Physics. I am by no means an expert on Entomology or Ichthyology(the study of insects and fish), so to any of my more knowledgeable colleagues in the fishing world, please don’t hesitate to correct me if I venture too far off point. 

This isn't my picture but it is a great one showing parr bars

Let’s start with the life cycle of a trout.  Like many beings, trout start off as eggs and then soon after develop into fry which usually lasts for about a year. The first year of a trout is a scary time, they must learn to survive without the protection of shelter while venturing around to feed themselves, all the while trying not to fall prey to the many lurking predators including their cannibalistic parents roaming around. If they survive this stage of life, they begin to develop into Parr, and can be identified by the vertical bar like marks on their sides. This is one of the most physically beautiful stages in their life. As they mature, they then develop into smolt and begin to travel the waters and make the transition into adulthood. They usually spend a couple years scouring the waters fattening up as they approach spawning maturity, Although Rainbow trout usually spawn earlier in their lives than others around 2 years. Like humans during puberty, their bodies begin to make some drastic changes. This is when we start to see the truly vibrant colors that make them seem to drive fisher people mad, causing mass exodus around the world in search for epic waters filled with eager trout.  As we start to see the colors, changes in sex become more apparent with females growing more rounded in stature and males growing their kype, or hook jaw.

A big male bruiser

A female bow

Let the spawning begin. Different species of trout spawn at different times of the year with Rainbows and Cuttys during the spring, while Brownies and Brookies do the dirty during the fall. As spawning begins, females will being to cruise around looking for optimum places to lay her eggs. Once she finds  a shallow, oxygen-rich piece of property she will begin cutting a “Redd”. What the hell is a Redd, you ask? It is a fancy word for spawning bed. I believe it gets its name from an old scottish or brittish word to “clean or “tidy” up”.  Which is appropriately named because that is essentially what the lady trout is doing, she is getting the broom out and doing some spring cleaning. Only she doesn’t have arms, so the broom is her tail. She flips on her side and sweeps away the sand and gravel and then deposit her eggs(between 1000 and 8000). During this time, aggression has taken over the males world, like a bull elk during the rut, males are locked up in fighting matches to see who that baddest dude on the playground is and who gets the best spots on the spawning grounds while keeping out other predators in the process. After gaining position, the male trout move onto the redds and fertilize away, after which, the females move above the redd to kick up gravel and sand to cover their new babies and protect them. Then the cycle of life is repeated.

A "Redd"...Where the Magic Happens

I cannot stress how important it is for us to remove ourselves from this process as much as possible.  Just like in real life, we all had that friend who at some point in your life had always seemed to get in the way or sabotage your chances at gettin’ laid. DON’T BE THAT GUY! In optimum conditions, only a very small percentage of those eggs will even make it to maturity.  We don’t need to further much up the situation by trampling all over the river.  Be sure to watch where you wade and be sure to take a step back and observe the conditions and trout behavior, if you see a fish actively spawning, move on. This is one of the best tips I can give, not just during the spawn. Before casting, take a few minutes and observe everything that is going on. Not even in the water, but everywhere around you. What are the other trout predators doing? Are they trampling around aimlessly in the water? Most likely they are observing, keying in on the trouts behavior looking for the opportune time to strike.  Before casting a line, try to solve a few pieces to the puzzle first. What kind of bugs do you see? Where are the trout at in the water column? Well that sort of turned into a lecture, hopefully this didn’t seem too much like homework. As always...tight lines!

Clint