Quantifying and reducing catch-and-release mortality of trout to support a wilderness tourism experience at Kenauk Resort

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Kenauk Nature is a Canadian-owned for-profit company committed to providing clients with unique recreational opportunities including recreational fishing. Kenauk owns and manages some 65,000 acres in Quebec with >70 private lakes. Core to the Kenauk brand is providing clients with a "wilderness" experience - private access to entire lakes in a pristine setting where fish are plentiful. Beyond limiting fishing effort on lakes (i.e., clients "book" a specific lake and associated cottage), much of the Kenauk reserve is managed under a catch-and-release framework (i.e., fish are released after capture). Nonetheless, Kenauk must engage in costly stocking efforts to maintain fishing quality which implies that there is some level of post-release fishing mortality. It is necessary to quantify that mortality to inform stocking practices and to identify opportunities for reducing catch-and-release mortality such that the need for stocking could be reduced. We would generate the necessary biological knowledge for the industry partner to ensure long-term viability of their recreational fisheries using defensible research methods. The project would involve the capture of trout between spring and early fall to understand how water temperature (which changes seasonally) and fish condition (which also changes seasonally) influence catch-and-release outcomes. Fish would be captured using common gear used by clients including lures (spinners/spoons) and flies with either barbed or barbless hooks. Fish would be fought and handled (including air exposure) for various periods of time to reflect a diversity of angler expertise. Details on species, water temperature, gear type, fish size, hook location, bleeding, and fish vitality (assessed with reflex impairment - a technique pioneered by my lab) would be recorded and fish would be temporarily marked and held for 48 hrs in net pens to evaluate mortality rate. Data would be incorporated into a model to identify the factors that influence mortality. We would also identify seasonal thresholds for air exposure which are necessary to share with anglers. The mortality estimate would inform models that will determine the extent to which stocking is needed to maintain fishing quality.