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South Mississippi Researchers Test New Waters With Speckled-Trout Project

Posted on: Wednesday, 27 July 2005, 09:00 CDT

Jul. 27--OCEAN SPRINGS -- Something fishy is going on at the Gulf Coast Research Lab.

Professors and students are raising thousands of speckled trout in an attempt to boost the population of one of the Coast's most popular game fish. Fish farming is not a new idea, but this type of saltwater program, under the direction of Reg Blaylock, associate research professor, is unique to the aquaculture world.

"This is the first time this has been done with speckled trout," Blaylock said. "Recreational fishing is a huge economic engine in coastal communities, so the goal is to demonstrate whether or not stock enhancement can increase the population of the species. There's a lot of interest in being able to maintain those levels."

The research lab received $250,000 in state funds through the Department of Marine Resources for the pilot program, which has been active since May 2004. The fish themselves are only 36 days old, and not more than 2 inches long.

"It's just getting started," said Jeffrey Lotz, chair of the Department of Coastal Sciences. "The whole idea of stock enhancement in a marine environment is relatively new, so where we are now is all new territory. We're using these fish to iron out the bugs and teach ourselves how to do it, but we're very happy with where we're at right now."

The current batch of fish in the study came from another fisheries project in Texas. Blaylock said due to genetic differences between Texas and Mississippi trout, none of the current fish will be released in Coastal waters. Once the growing process has proved effective, genetically compatible batches of trout will be raised, tagged and released in along the Coast. Later, the researchers will take samples of the population and determine how successful their efforts have been.

"It's really a combination of maintaining the population for the anglers," Blaylock said. "And also maintaining the integrity of the marine ecosystem. Any species that undergoes fishing pressure, you run the risk of altering the structure of that community. The goal is to add fish to the population, so we'll use the data we get back from our samples to better focus on having a positive impact."

The Gulf Coast Research Lab is part of the University of Southern Mississippi College of Marine Sciences.

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Copyright (c) 2005, The Sun Herald, Biloxi, Miss.

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Source: The Sun Herald (Biloxi, Miss.)

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