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🎣 Rainbow trout
Not native to the UK but now the backbone of stocked stillwater trout fishing nationwide, valued for growing quickly and fighting hard on light fly and lure tackle.
Identification
A broad pink-to-red iridescent stripe running along each flank, silvery body, and small black spots covering the back, fins and tail. Generally more uniformly coloured than brown trout, with less variation between individual fish.
UK habitat
Almost exclusively found in the UK as stocked fish in reservoirs and commercial stillwater trout fisheries, since it doesn't reliably breed in most UK conditions. The dominant species at the vast majority of UK put-and-take trout fisheries.