Infosuperior hosts a monthly podcast series! Throughout these short audio sessions, Infosuperior interviews people from around Lake Superior and beyond about environmental, economic, historical and cultural issues related to Lake Superior.

 

APRIL EDITION
Monday, May 27, 2015

Ray Dupuis as a boy with a string of brook trout caught in Clearwater Creek.
Ray Dupuis as a boy with a string of brook trout caught in Clearwater Creek.

In the April, 2015 edition of Infosuperior’s podcast series Nipigon resident Ray Dupuis speaks about fish, the Nipigon River and Nipigon Bay. LISTEN TO THE INTERVIEW BY CLICKING HERE. Ray provides information about the robust fish populations of his youth, the decline in the fishery and the work to recover fish populations in the Nipigon River and Nipigon Bay. Ray is a long-time Nipigon resident, former environmental coordinator at the Red Rock mill and a lifelong fisherman on both Nipigon Bay and the Nipigon River.

JANUARY EDITION
Thursday, January 29, 2015

Rob Swainson
Rob Swainson, former fisheries biologist with the Nipigon District Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry (MNRF) holding a coaster brook trout.

To listen to the interview, click here.

In the January 2015 edition of InfoSuperior’s podcast, or audio interview series, Nipigon Bay Remedial Action Plan Coordinator Jim Bailey speaks with Rob Swainson, a former fisheries biologist with the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry (MNRF) who worked extensively on the Nipigon River. The interview touches on the importance of the Nipigon River to area residents as well as the restoration efforts made to assist fish populations, including coaster brook trout.

As a high-profile game fish with an international reputation, coaster brook trout are a unique variant among brook trout, not only because of their large size and silvery colour, but also their migration into tributaries for spawning in the fall.

Coasters migrate from rivers to a freshwater lake and back for spawning. Therefore they spend a significant portion of their life in Lake Superior’s Nipigon Bay. Named for their affinity to the coastal waters of Lake Superior, coasters are known for their large size and silvery colour while in the lake. They are highly prized by anglers. The world record brook trout (weighing in at 14.5 pounds) was in fact a coaster brook trout caught in the Nipigon River on July 21st, 1915. This catch still remains as one of the oldest unbroken fishing records.

During the spawning season, coasters regain the typical brook trout colouration and migrate up tributary rivers and creeks to spawn. It is at this time, when they are staging and spawning, that coaster brook trout are particularly vulnerable. Their large size and white leading-edged fins make them highly visible in the tea-coloured waters of the Nipigon River and it’s tributaries, creating easy targets for predators and anglers alike.

The status and range of coaster brook trout has been drastically reduced due to a variety of pressures, including habitat alteration, swings in water level due to hydro-electric power generation, pollution, exploitation and competition from introduced species including Pacific salmon and brown trout.  The last remaining stronghold for coaster brook trout is Nipigon Bay, which contains almost half the known remaining coaster rivers and streams.

Note: Some of the earlier podcast files are in the Quicktime movie format (.mov). Please ensure your volume is turned up, your computer has Quicktime enabled and that you are running a current version of one of the more popular internet browsers. To download Quicktime visit: http://www.apple.com/ca/quicktime/download/.

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