The History and Distribution of Brown Trout, Salmo trutta Linnaeus, 1758, in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Prince Edward Island

Samuel N. Andrews^1,2,*, Keeler J. Colton², Elizabeth M.T. Bateman², John L. MacMillan³, Colin F. Buhariwalla³, Kathryn Collet⁴, Abbey Greer⁴, Rosanne McFarlane⁵, andMichael. J.W. Stokesbury²

¹Ducks Unlimited Canada, 64 Highway 6, Amherst, NS B4H 3Y4, Canada.²Nova Scotia Museum, 1747 Summer Street, Halifax, NS B3H 3A6, Canada. ³Nova Scotia Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture: Inland Fisheries Division, 91 Beeches Road, Pictou, NS B0K 1H0, Canada. ⁴New Brunswick Department of Natural Resources and Energy Development, Hugh John Flemming Forestry Complex, 1350 Regent Street, Fredericton, NB E3C 2G6, Canada. ⁵Prince Edward Island Department of Environment, Energy and Climate Action. Forests, Fish and Wildlife Division, 183 Upton Road, PO Box 2000, Charlottetown PE C1A 7N8, Canada. *Corresponding author.

Northeastern Naturalist, Volume 32, Monograph 26 (2025): 1–90

First published early online: 11 March 2025

Abstract
Salmo trutta (Brown Trout) were introduced to New Brunswick in 1921 and Nova Scotia in 1925, where they have become widely distributed throughout coastal tributaries and inland lakes. Brown Trout occupy freshwater across their native and introduced range. However, they tend towards anadromy anywhere they have access to the sea, making them an effective colonizer of coastal rivers and estuaries. The Canadian Maritime Provinces provided the necessary conditions for natural colonization, and through this mechanism, Brown Trout have found their way to unstocked waters, including in Prince Edward Island, where the species was never intentionally introduced. Brown Trout are a popular recreational species in the Maritime Provinces, but no synthesis of the species’ distribution has been conducted in the region. Here we report on the complete Brown Trout stocking history, introduced distribution, natural colonization, and management in the Maritime Provinces. The goal of this review is to provide the baseline data necessary to inform local scientific studies of Brown Trout, monitor the ongoing colonization of coastal habitat, and to assist in studying, managing, and documenting the occurrence of Brown Trout alongside native freshwater species.

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