Above are photos of the two most notable and important
brook trout streams in Ohio-- Sulfur Springs and Spring Brook.
Clearly when looking for criteria to define Ohio brook trout streams,
these two places are where to start. Spring Brook is particularly
important, for it is the only known stream in Ohio to have continually
held a wild trout population since the last ice age. For this
reason, other streams that resemble Spring Brook would be considered
the most likely candidates for trout reintroduction. Sulfur Springs
can be used as a good maker for the other end of the spectrum
when it comes to potential trout streams, for it lacks many of
the characteristics that makes Spring Brook so ideal, yet it still
holds a healthy, reproducing population of trout.
In order for any stream to hold trout there are certain habitat
requirements necessary to meet the general
biological needs of brook trout. The two most critical aspects
of this are the temperature and the flow of the water in the stream.
Because of their high oxygen requirements, brook trout experience
stress in any water over 65 degrees Fahrenheit (though fish in
Sulfur Springs have been documented in water in the low seventies).
Streams that experience large flood spikes are also unsuitable
habitat for trout because of the destruction to habitat and spawning
beds that high flows can cause. Though temperature and flow are
the two basic factors to be considered when looking for trout
streams, many other aspects of a stream should be noted to see
if it is an ideal Ohio brook trout stream.
