Region 5 - Lake Champlain New York Tributary Fry Stocking Assessment Surveys

The Lake Champlain Fish and Wildlife Management Cooperative has been attempting to restore landlocked Atlantic salmon to the Lake Champlain basin since the 1970s. As part of this effort, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, have coordinated the stocking of age-0 Atlantic salmon fry into several headwater tributaries within the Boquet and Ausable River watersheds. Understanding the habitat use, survival, dispersal, and ecological impacts of Atlantic salmon fry in these headwater reaches will inform important management actions related to the restoration of landlocked Atlantic salmon in the Lake Champlain basin. This electrofishing assessment is a critical step in evaluating the success of these stocking efforts. The USFWS Lake Champlain FWCO ha conducted annual fry stocking electrofishing assessments in Boquet River and Ausable River tributaries since 2021. The project has been funded by the Great Lakes Fisheries Commission.