04-19-2012, 11:10 AM
CONCORD, N.H. - Record warmth this winter has brought an early start to
spring in New Hampshire this year, and that's good news for anglers<br />
targeting the "King of Fish" - broodstock Atlantic salmon that are stocked<br />
into the Merrimack River watershed each spring and fall.
"With very little snow melt, river flows this April are more typical of<br />
early summer. Cold water and low flows make for excellent salmon fishing, so<br />
we decided to stock the fish early this year," said Matt Carpenter, the New<br />
Hampshire Fish and Game Department fisheries biologist who manages the<br />
salmon broodstock fishery. "With no rain in the extended forecast, hopefully<br />
this will be one of the longer spring broodstock salmon fishing seasons in<br />
recent memory."
Stocking has already begun, and the bulk of the salmon should be in by early<br />
next week, according to Carpenter. The fish will be spread between stocking<br />
sites beginning in Bristol and working south to Franklin, Concord and<br />
Hooksett, N.H.
"We have about 680 fish to stock this spring. The salmon looked good when we<br />
tagged them about a week ago, with a wide variety of sizes ranging from 3<br />
pounds to over 10 pounds," said Carpenter.
To fish for brood stock salmon, anglers need a current New Hampshire fishing<br />
license and an $11 brood stock salmon permit. Both can be purchased online<br />
at http://www.fishnh.com or from Fish and Game license agents statewide.<br />
Only salmon marked by Fish and Game with a T-bar anchor at the base of the<br />
dorsal fin may be kept, and the bag limit is 1 per day and 5 total for the<br />
season. For more information on New Hampshire's brood stock salmon fishery,<br />
including an access map, visit<br />
http://www.fishnh.com/Fishing/atlantic_salmon.htm.
Find out what it's all about by watching a short video about brood stock<br />
salmon fishing on the Merrimack at<br />
http://www.fishnh.com/Fishing/atlantic_salmon.htm.
"Spring is when we stock the robust 3- and 4-year-old salmon, as opposed to<br />
the two-year-olds stocked in the fall," said Carpenter. "Salmon are not<br />
ready to produce eggs until they are at least three years old. In the<br />
spring, we stock extra fish that have already spawned the previous fall. In<br />
the fall, we are stocking extra fish that will not be needed to provide eggs<br />
for the program."
Brood stock anglers are encouraged to report their experiences to Fish and<br />
Game by contacting Matt Carpenter at 603-271-2612 or<br />
matthew.carpenter@wildlife.nh.gov.
New Hampshire has the only managed Atlantic salmon river fishery in New<br />
England. The big fish stocked in the brood stock salmon program have<br />
completed their maternal duty producing the fry (young salmon) used in the<br />
Atlantic salmon restoration program, a partnership between the New Hampshire<br />
Fish and Game Department and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Purchase of<br />
brood stock salmon permits helps support this cooperative state-federal<br />
restoration effort, along with a number of other fish conservation projects.<br />
The program is also supported through federal funds from the Federal Aid in<br />
Sport Fish Restoration Program.
spring in New Hampshire this year, and that's good news for anglers<br />
targeting the "King of Fish" - broodstock Atlantic salmon that are stocked<br />
into the Merrimack River watershed each spring and fall.
"With very little snow melt, river flows this April are more typical of<br />
early summer. Cold water and low flows make for excellent salmon fishing, so<br />
we decided to stock the fish early this year," said Matt Carpenter, the New<br />
Hampshire Fish and Game Department fisheries biologist who manages the<br />
salmon broodstock fishery. "With no rain in the extended forecast, hopefully<br />
this will be one of the longer spring broodstock salmon fishing seasons in<br />
recent memory."
Stocking has already begun, and the bulk of the salmon should be in by early<br />
next week, according to Carpenter. The fish will be spread between stocking<br />
sites beginning in Bristol and working south to Franklin, Concord and<br />
Hooksett, N.H.
"We have about 680 fish to stock this spring. The salmon looked good when we<br />
tagged them about a week ago, with a wide variety of sizes ranging from 3<br />
pounds to over 10 pounds," said Carpenter.
To fish for brood stock salmon, anglers need a current New Hampshire fishing<br />
license and an $11 brood stock salmon permit. Both can be purchased online<br />
at http://www.fishnh.com or from Fish and Game license agents statewide.<br />
Only salmon marked by Fish and Game with a T-bar anchor at the base of the<br />
dorsal fin may be kept, and the bag limit is 1 per day and 5 total for the<br />
season. For more information on New Hampshire's brood stock salmon fishery,<br />
including an access map, visit<br />
http://www.fishnh.com/Fishing/atlantic_salmon.htm.
Find out what it's all about by watching a short video about brood stock<br />
salmon fishing on the Merrimack at<br />
http://www.fishnh.com/Fishing/atlantic_salmon.htm.
"Spring is when we stock the robust 3- and 4-year-old salmon, as opposed to<br />
the two-year-olds stocked in the fall," said Carpenter. "Salmon are not<br />
ready to produce eggs until they are at least three years old. In the<br />
spring, we stock extra fish that have already spawned the previous fall. In<br />
the fall, we are stocking extra fish that will not be needed to provide eggs<br />
for the program."
Brood stock anglers are encouraged to report their experiences to Fish and<br />
Game by contacting Matt Carpenter at 603-271-2612 or<br />
matthew.carpenter@wildlife.nh.gov.
New Hampshire has the only managed Atlantic salmon river fishery in New<br />
England. The big fish stocked in the brood stock salmon program have<br />
completed their maternal duty producing the fry (young salmon) used in the<br />
Atlantic salmon restoration program, a partnership between the New Hampshire<br />
Fish and Game Department and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Purchase of<br />
brood stock salmon permits helps support this cooperative state-federal<br />
restoration effort, along with a number of other fish conservation projects.<br />
The program is also supported through federal funds from the Federal Aid in<br />
Sport Fish Restoration Program.