Why is it so hard to manage kokanee and lake trout in the same lake?
Kokanee and lake trout did not evolve together and experts consider this predator-prey combination to be unstable. As a result, routine and intensive sampling of a reservoir’s food web and fish population characteristics are needed to monitor and manage these fisheries. Charlie Meyers (sports columnist) has offered the analogy of trying to maintain domestic sheep as a prey base for mountain lions – sheep can thrive on Colorado’s rangelands, but they are not well adapted to resist lion predation. Does the CDOW wish to eradicate lake trout in the state? Absolutely not. What is sought is a better balance between lake trout and their food supplies. Maximizing lake trout catch rates AND lake trout trophy potential are mutually exclusive goals. There is a limited food supply in reservoirs so it is biologically impossible to manage for large numbers of big lake trout. Over-protecting lake trout from harvest can become self-defeating as lake trout numbers overshoot their prey and eliminate or
