Species image (Illustration Credit: U.S. Wildlife Service)

What it looks like

  • back is olive-green, brown or black; belly is silvery or white
  • light wormlike markings and spots on dark background, some red and blue
  • white leading edge on lower fins, set off by black line
  • square tail
  • mouth extends backwards to well beyond the eye

Size

  • length: 15-40 centimetres (6-16 inches)
  • weight: 0.45-1.36 kilograms (1-3 pounds)
  • Ontario record: 6.6 kilograms (14.5 pounds)

Similar fish

Where it is found

Range of the Brook Trout in Ontario

Species distribution map (modified from Mandrak and Crossman, 1992)

Range

  • much of Ontario from the small brooks of southern Ontario farmland to the larger rivers, ponds and lakes of the North
  • use Fish ON-Line, an interactive mapping tool, to find specific lakes and rivers

Habitat

  • a year-round supply of cold, clear water
  • plenty of cover from overhanging branches, logs and rocks
  • streams with cool, quiet pools between runs of fast water and rapids
  • clear, cold lakes and beaver ponds

Find a fishing spot with Fish ON-Line

Angling tips

  • found near overhanging trees, submerged wood, rocky points and shoals
  • inland-lake brook trout are most active during spring and fall
  • river brook trout stay in cold pools at the base of falls and rapids through the summer, spread out during the spring and fall
  • worms and other natural baits are preferred during high-water periods
  • use a flyrod and flies as water temperature rises, and trout move from deep pools into riffles in search of insects
  • use a light-action 7-foot rod and a spinning reel holding 4 to 8-pound test

Common baits

  • small minnow-imitating plugs
  • spoons, jigs, spinners
  • artificial flies
  • worms, minnows, leeches, insects