In the western United States, the ability of non‐native lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) to attain large sizes, > 18 kg under favorable conditions, fueled the popularity of lake trout fisheries. In the past, restrictive regulations were adopted to increase lake trout abundance and produce trophy specimens. More recently, lake trout have become increasingly problematic because they prey upon and potentially compete with native and sport fishes. We review the experiences of agencies in seven western states which are considering or implementing strategies to address lake trout impacts despite management difficulties due to mixed public perception about lake trout's complex interactions with native or introduced fauna. Special regulations protecting lake trout have often been liberalized or rescinded to encourage their harvest and reduce their negative effects. More intensive methods to control or reduce lake trout abundance include promoting or requiring lake trout harvest, commercial‐scale netting, disrupting spawning, and stocking sterile lake trout.

High rates of spinal injury from electrofishing have been reported for rainbow trout Oncorhynchus mykiss, but little is known about the fate and performance of injured fish. We conducted a long‐term experiment to evaluate how incidence and severity of electrofishing‐induced spinal injury affects growth and survival. We electroshocked 866 wild rainbow trout from the Gallatin River, Montana, using one of three different DC pulse shapes (smooth, half pulse, and full pulse), X‐rayed the fish to determine degree of spinal injury, and compared short‐term (100‐d) growth and long‐term (335‐d) growth and survival after transplanting the fish to a 0.6‐ha pond (stocking biomass, 255 kg/ha). Rainbow trout shocked with pulsed DC had significantly higher (P = 0.0001) incidence (40–54%) of spinal injury than those shocked with smooth DC (12%); injuries were also more severe among fish captured with pulsed DC (P < 0.01). Incidence and severity of injury were positively correlated with fish length (r = 0.79–0.83, P < 0.02). Few surviving fish (7 of 418) at the end of the study exhibited outwardly visible spinal deformities. Healing of spinal injuries was readily apparent on radiographs as evidenced by calcification and fusion of damaged vertebrae. Long‐term survival of rainbow trout was not affected by pulse shape used during capture or by severity of electrofishing‐induced injury. However, fish with moderate to severe injury (spinal misalignment and fracture), representing 28% of the total number shocked, had markedly lower growth and condition after 335 d than fish with no or low spinal injury.

We review the ecology and conservation of three lesser‐known chars (genus Salvelinus): Dolly Varden (S. malma), white‐spotted char (S. leucomaenis), and bull trout (S. confluentus). Dolly Varden is distributed across the northern Pacific Rim and co‐occurs with bull trout and white‐spotted char at the southern extremes of its range. In contrast, bull trout and white‐spotted char are naturally isolated, with the former restricted to North America and the latter distributed in northeastern Asia. Though the range of Dolly Varden overlaps with the two other chars, it is most closely related to Arctic char (S. alpinus), whereas bull trout and white‐spotted char are sister taxa. Each species exhibits diverse life histories with respect to demographic characteristics, trophic ecology, and movement. This diversity appears to be tied to environmental variability (e.g., temperature, habitat connectivity), resource availability (e.g., food), and species interactions. Increasingly, these interactions involve nonnative species including nonnative salmonines and changes in food webs related to establishment of species such as Mysis shrimp in large lakes. As humans expand into the remote and pristine habitats that support these three chars, we encourage proactive consideration of the lessons learned where chars have already declined and internationally‐based research and conservation.

There is an urgent need to consider more aggressive and direct interventions for the conservation of freshwater fishes that are threatened by invasive species, habitat loss, and climate change. Conservation introduction (moving a species outside its indigenous range to other areas where conditions are predicted to be more suitable) is one type of translocation strategy that fisheries managers can use to establish new conservation populations in areas of refugia. To date, however, there are few examples of successful conservation‐based introductions. Many attempts fail to establish new populations—in part because environmental factors that might influence success are inadequately evaluated before the translocation is implemented. We developed a framework to assess the feasibility of rescuing threatened fish populations through translocation into historically unoccupied stream and lake habitats. The suitability of potential introduction sites was evaluated based on four major components: the recipient habitat, recipient community, donor population, and future threats. Specific questions were then developed to evaluate each major component. The final assessment was based on a scoring system that addressed each question by using criteria developed from characteristics representative of highly suitable habitats and populations. This framework was used to evaluate the proposed within‐drainage translocation of three Bull Trout Salvelinus confluentus populations in Glacier National Park, Montana. Our results indicated that within‐drainage translocation is a feasible strategy for conserving locally adapted populations of Bull Trout through the creation of new areas of refugia in Glacier National Park. The framework provides a flexible platform that can help managers make informed decisions for moving threatened fishes into new areas of refugia for conservation and recovery programs. Received April 26, 2015; accepted January 17, 2016 Published online July 7, 2016