BC Conservation Data Centre: Conservation Status Report
Salvelinus namaycush
Lake Trout
| Scientific Name: | Salvelinus namaycush |
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| English Name: | Lake Trout |
| Provincial Status Summary | |
| Status: | S4 |
| Date Status Assigned: | November 04, 2000 |
| Date Last Reviewed: | May 15, 2019 |
| Reasons: | Lake Trout are found in lakes and rivers throughout BC, excluding the coast. They are vulnerable to overfishing, mature later and have a low fecundity. As a cold water species, any changes in climate could be detrimental to this species. |
| Range | |
| Range Extent: | G = 200,000-2,500,000 square km |
| Range Extent Comments: | The native range of lake trout in BC includes the upper and middle Fraser system; the upper Skeena, Nass, Iskut-Stikine, Taku and Yukon drainage systems; and the Peace and Liard systems (McPhail 2007). Populations south of Shuswap Lake are probably introduced (McPhail, in Klinkenberg ND, accessed November 5, 2018). |
| Occurrences & Population | |
| Number of Occurrences: | DE = 81 to >300 |
| Comments: | Lake trout are found naturally in both small and large lakes, ranging from Shuswap Lake to the northern border of BC (McPhail 2007). |
| Number of Occurrences with Good Viability / Ecological Integrity: | Rank Factor not assessed |
| Number of Occurrences Appropriately Protected & Managed: | Rank Factor not assessed |
| Population Size: | FG = 10,000 - 1,000,000 individuals |
| Comments: | The number of mature lake trout vary per lake from the low hundreds to closer to 1000 (Anderson 2014). |
| Threats (to population, occurrences, or area affected) | |
| Degree of Threat: | C = Medium |
| Comments: | Lake trout are vulnerable to overfishing, and there have been cases where high harvest rates have led to collapse of lake trout populations (Anderson 2014) |
| Trend (in population, range, area occupied, and/or condition of occurrences) | |
| Short-Term Trend: | F = Decline of 10-30% |
| Comments: | There have been management issues with exploited populations of lake trout; however, there are also a number of healthy systems in the different regions (Giroux 2003; Anderson 2007; Northrup 2008; Anderson 2014). |
| Long-Term Trend: | F = Decline of 10-30% |
| Comments: | Lake trout have shown declines (in some systems, down to critically low levels) in systems in both the Skeena and Peace regions since the 1970's (Giroux 2003; Anderson 2014). |
| Other Factors | |
| Intrinsic Vulnerability: | B=Moderately vulnerable |
| Comments: | Lake trout mature between the ages of 5-13, and have large eggs with low fecundity (McPhail 2007). |
| Environmental Specificity: | B=Narrow. Specialist or community with key requirements common. |
| Comments: | Shallow and deep waters of northern lakes and streams and restricted to relatively deep lakes in the southern part of it's range (Fishbase 2018). Lake trout prefer cool water (McPhail 2007). |
| Other Rank Considerations: | |
| Information Gaps | |
| Research Needs: | |
| Inventory Needs: | |
| Stewardship | |
| Protection: | |
| Management: | |
| Version | |
| Author: | Woodruff, P. |
| Date: | March 25, 2015 |
| References | |
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Anderson, B.J. 2007. Lake trout status assessments on three northern lakes with low exploitation: Muncho, Fishing and Netson Lakes 2006. Fisheries Section, Ministry of Environment, Peace Regions.
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Anderson, B.J. 2014. Lake trout assessment and recovery efforts for Moberly Lake, 2010-2012. Peace Region Fisheries Section, B.C. Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy
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Giroux, P.A. 2003. Assessment of lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) stocks and an evaluation of netting and analysis techniques in Chapman, Augier, Pinkut, Taltapin and Doris lakes, BC. Skeena Fisheries Report #SK-143, BC Ministry of Water, Land and Air Protection, Smithers, BC
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McPhail, J.D. 2007. The freshwater fishes of British Columbia. The University of Alberta Press, Edmonton, Alberta.
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Northrup, S. 2008. Population structure of lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) in Atlin Lake, British Columbia and contributions to local fisheries: a microsatellite DNA-based assessment. MSc thesis, University of BC, Vancouver.
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Please visit the website Conservation Status Ranks for information on how the CDC determines conservation status ranks. For global conservation status reports and ranks, please visit the NatureServe website http://www.natureserve.org/.
Suggested Citation:
B.C. Conservation Data Centre. 2015. Conservation Status Report: Salvelinus namaycush. B.C. Minist. of Environment. Available: https://a100.gov.bc.ca/pub/eswp/ (accessed Jan 24, 2025).