Division of Fisheries and Wildlife to cease stocking rainbow trout in Upper Deerfield River

Mature rainbow trout at the Bitzer State Hatchery.

Mature rainbow trout at the Bitzer State Hatchery. STAFF FILE PHOTO/PAUL FRANZ

By CHRIS LARABEE

Staff Writer

Published: 03-04-2025 9:39 AM

WESTBOROUGH — The Division of Fisheries and Wildlife announced at Thursday’s Fisheries and Wildlife Board meeting it would cease stocking of rainbow trout in the five-mile stretch of the Upper Deerfield River from the Fife Brook Dam to Zoar Gap, in response to the comments of dozens of anglers in the region.

MassWildlife Western District Supervisor Andrew Madden reported the decision to the board and gave an overview of the request submitted to MassWildlife last spring. The initiative was spearheaded by a grassroots conservation group called Rewild the Deerfield River, which was formed by longtime anglers Kevin Parsons, Per Brandin and Square-Tail Anglers head guide Jonathan Bunker.

Parsons, a Shelburne Falls-based attorney, and his partners say there is a robust wild fishery in the upper stretch of the Deerfield River, which, if allowed to flourish, could make the river more resilient to a changing climate. Their request was brought before two public hearings in October, where 21 of the 26 members of the public who attended supported the proposal, whose comments were supplemented by what Fisheries and Wildlife Board members described as a large volume of letters

On top of concerns about stocked fish crowding out native fish – something Madden pushed back on in an interview earlier this month – Parsons said the request ties into federal license renewals for dams on the river, including Brookfield Renewable’s Fife Brook Dam, which will begin operation under its new license with higher minimum winter flows in a few years, and Great River Hydro’s license renewal for several dams farther up the river in Vermont.

“Obviously we’re excited and thankful that this decision was made. It was because of the well-over 60 people, that we’re aware of, that sent in emails and letters to the board in support of this common sense, science-based approach to the management of the upper Deerfield wild fishery,” Parsons said Friday morning. “Now we can see what this wild fishery can do for itself, and also we can gather valuable science that I previously talked about over the next few years to assess the wild fishery and the impacts of the flow regime change, which should be happening in the next three to four years.”

MassWildlife has stocked the upper Deerfield River for at least 40 years,if not more, although it stopped stocking brown trout in that area of the river in 2023. Brown trout are native to the river.

The agency has stocked trout, according to Madden, in order to enhance recreational opportunities for anglers by stocking approximately 4,000 to 5,000 fish in the 20-mile stretch of the upper Deerfield. He added the agency does not have conservation concerns about stocking fish.

“Where and how we stock are operational decisions, where we try to provide the best fishing we can for our constituents,” Madden said. “We understand the impact that hatchery fish have had on the genetics and habitat use of wild and native fish globally, but that body of literature isn’t directly relevant to our current conditions and management of the upper Deerfield, where we stock catchable rainbows.”

Your Daily Puzzles

Cross|Word

Flipart

Typeshift

SpellTower

Really Bad Chess

In response to resident concerns, though, Madden said the agency will cease stocking in the five-mile stretch from Fife Brook Dam to Zoar Gap, but it will continue to stock fish downstream from there.

“This overall approach, I would say, addresses many of the concerns that we heard from anglers through the listening sessions and other communications, but also retain the ability for people to continue to fish for rainbow trout in some of that upper section of the Deerfield River,” Madden said. “We’re going to continue our research to better understand the aquatic communities in the Deerfield and the brown trout there, and we will remain responsive to public input.”

The Deerfield River Watershed Chapter of Trout Unlimited also welcomed MassWildlife’s decision. Chapter President Eric Halloran said his group has developed a “comprehensive plan for wildlife managment that we’ve been proposing” to the state in order to protect the brown trout spawning in the upper Deerfield River.

Stocking was one of the major components – and an easy one to adopt because it’s an operational decision, meaning it can be changed by staff without a public hearing like a regulatory decision. More long-term goals, which would require an extensive hearing process, would be merging the two catch-and-release areas on the Upper Deerfield river, establishing refuges for trout in the river’s cooler tributaries during the hot summer months and only allowing barbless hooks.

“We’re gratified that they met that request as part of our comprehensive approach to wild trout management,” Halloran said. “It’s a good start for what we’d like to see.”

Parsons said the agency’s decision was the result of local advocates and showcased how people here in Franklin County – and around the state – have the ability to bring forth changes to a long-standing practice, even if it is a difficult challenge.

“The takeaway here is that it was because of individuals, Per, Jonathan Bunker and I, that brought forward this initiative. It was through our efforts to mobilize and get engagement with similarly-minded individuals to weigh in. That’s why this decision was made,” Parsons said. “We do believe this is right. We do believe things will be better and we just need to give the river a chance.”

Chris Larabee can be reached at clarabee@recorder.com.