Lake Trout (Salvelinus namaycush)
Last Update/Review: August 6, 2002
The lake trout is the least colorful of the trouts. It is a grey fish with irregular white spots. During the fall spawning season, the fins near the tail become a pale orange.
Lake trout are native to many of Alberta's deep cold lakes. They grow very slowly, and often don't mature until they are 8-10 years of age. Because of this late age of spawning, heavy fishing pressure can seriously deplete lake trout populations. Lake trout are long-lived with the larger ones reaching 20-25 years of age and exceeding 10 kg in weight. Young lake trout feed on freshwater shrimp and other aquatic invertebrates. Larger lake trout eat other species of fish, mostly whitefish and tullibee.
Lake trout feed near the surface of a lake when the water is cold (spring and fall). During the summer, the cold denser water sinks to the bottom of the lake and the trout follow it down. Anglers who seek this fish during the summer months must use long lines and heavy lures to fish in the deep waters. Large, shiny spoons are the best lures.
