When settlers first arrived in what would later become America, they likely came across coastal streams filled with brook trout, specifically sea-run brookies. Known as salters, these sea-run trout are genetically identical to their inland counterparts but live an entirely different life history. They are what biologists refer to as diadromous fish, meaning they travel freely between salt and freshwater. Salters will spend most of their lives in creeks and rivers where they grow and spawn, only heading to the ocean to seek cold water and food.
When salters head to the sea, they take on silvery colors, like a steelhead would heading back to the ocean. In the salt, the abundance of food allowed them to grow to impressive sizes. In fact, a 13-pound salter was caught in Carmans River on Long Island, back in the 1800s. Unfortunately, the days of abundant salters were limited. Today, just a handful of streams and rivers still hold these precious fish in the Northeast.
The Decline of Salters
Salters, despite their unique name, are still brook trout. This means they require the same clean and cold water that their inland counterparts rely on. In the mid-19th century, the US, focused on growth, entered the Industrial Revolution. With industry, growth, and money being the sole focus, conservation fell by the wayside, and salters felt the impacts. Streams and rivers that were once strongholds of these fish were polluted by industrial runoff, leaving some populations fully extirpated and others dwindling.
At the same time, America’s fascination with dams began. Damming the coastal rivers that salters depended on had devastating effects. Places like Cape Cod, where salters once were abundant, turned to irrigation and damming to create cranberry bogs. Water temperatures rose, and fish passage was severely limited and in some cases entirely cut off. This combination of factors, in addition to angling pressure, led to the collapse of sea-run brook trout populations across the northeast. Today, the remaining sea run populations are limited to mainly spring-fed coastal streams.
A Fish Worth Saving
Prior to the introduction of rainbow and brown trout, brook trout and salters were the only trout (albeit technically a char) in the northeast. While land-based brookies still have strongholds in the far north, viable populations of salters are limited to just a handful of creeks in New York, Massachusetts, and Maine. These fish, while forgotten by many, are a core part of American fly fishing history. The remaining populations have withstood the test of time, and with that, it is our duty as anglers to protect them.
Hope for the Salters
The future of salters is hopeful. Organizations like the Sea Run Brook Trout Coalition are leading the charge in protecting and restoring remaining salter habitats. Their work in Cape Cod led to the restoration of Red Brook, restoring flow and protecting crucial habitats. Today, Red Brook serves as a year-round catch-and-release fishery, where anglers can target salters with artificial tackle only.
The unfortunate truth is salter populations will never be what they once were. A myriad of issues, including pollution and warming climates, have left many streams uninhabitable. For those sea-run brookie populations that are still holding on, the work of conservation organizations offers a glimmer of hope. When efforts are taken to protect and restore salter habitats, these resilient fish will bounce back.
