NPS extends program to pay for brown trout from Colorado River

By Rebekah Alvey | 02/23/2024 01:17 PM EST

The agency pays anglers to catch the trout, which prey on native fish in the river, including the threatened humpback chub.

Brown trout

A brown trout is caught in the Conejos River in the Rio Grande National Forest in Colorado. Interior Department/Flickr

The National Park Service is reupping a program that pays people to catch invasive brown trout that threaten native fish in the Colorado River.

The “incentivized harvest” program is expected to continue through at least the rest of 2024, NPS said in a news release. Qualifying trout must be caught from the Colorado River in Arizona between Glen Canyon Dam and the Paria River.

Under the harvest, anglers are paid at least $25 for brown trout that are over 6 inches long.

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During a “spring bonanza” that will run March 1 to April 7, the reward is increased to $50 per brown trout. At the end of the event, the angler with the largest fish harvest will receive an additional reward of $500.

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