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THE POTENTIAL OF ARCTIC CHAR, <br />Salvelinus alpinus, IN ROCICX MOUNTAIN LAKES <br />_ ROBERT J. BEHNKE <br />FISHERY AND WILDLIFE BIOLOGY <br />COLORADO STATE UNIVERSITY <br />FORT COLLINS, CO 80523 <br />ABSTRACT <br />The Arctic char has received little attention in American <br />fisheries management. It has the potential, however, of making <br />more effective use of resources and accumulating more biomass in <br />large, cold, Rocky Mountain lakes than any other single species <br />of fish. Because of its potential for rapid growth on a variety <br />of food, the Arctic char may become an important species for <br />aquaculture. <br />In the contiguous 48 states, Arctic char, Salvelinus alpinus, <br />is regarded as a rare and fragile relict of the ice age (Sunapee <br />golden trout and blueback trout of northern New England). Although <br />the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Came propagates the <br />native blueback trout, this is done more in a sense of stewardship <br />for the preservation of a rare native fish, rather than a fisheries <br />management action. <br />During my participation in international char activities <br />(Behnke 1980, 1984), it became apparent to me that northern <br />European fishery agencies consider S. alpinus as a very practical <br />management fish, comparable to rainbow trout in the i?.S.A. This <br />is due to the fact that S. alpinus, in lakes, exhibit a tremendous <br />plasticity in feeding habits. In cold, oligotrophic lakes with <br />varied pelagic and benthic organisms, S, alpinus can probably <br />accumulate more biomass in its population than any other salmonid <br />species because a relatively long life span and its ability to <br />utilize a diversity of food at varying depths. <br />The Arctic char is a true Coldwater species. Since the <br />retreat of the last glaciers and subsequent warming, New England <br />lakes have become marginal environments. The most optimal Cold- <br />water environments for Arctic char in the 48 contiguous states <br />are high elevation lakes in the Rocky Mountain region, especially <br />deep, ultraoligotrophic lakes. Such lakes commonly are stocked <br />with rainbow or cutthroat trout or have naturally reproducing <br />brook trout (typically stunted). Although these lakes may produce <br />a moderate quality fishery, it is likely that much of the food <br />resources, especially deepwater pelagic and benthic invertebrates, <br />are little utilized by brook, rainbow, or cutthroat trout <br />(oppossum shrimp, Mysis relicta, are frequently a major item in <br />Arctic char diets in their native range). <br />7 <br />