Into The Wild: Trout Stream

Even if you aren’t an angler, it’s tons of fun to wade around in a cool, clear trout stream.

Listen

Northern parulas are tiny, brightly colored birds that sing from the tippiest top of trees along streams. They’re hard to see, but easy to hear. Listen for a buzzy trill that sounds like someone zipping up a zipper.

What Happened Here?

Swallowtails, sulphurs, and other butterflies often cluster over wet areas on gravel bars. They gather to sip up sodium and other minerals that are important to their diet.

Look

You’ll need good eyes to spot these fish. Although some of them are brightly colored, they become all but invisible against the gravel at the bottom of a stream.

Do More

If you like splashing around in streams, consider joining a Stream Team. Volunteers check water quality, pick up litter, and improve stream habitat. Learn more at mostreamteam.org.

• Longear sunfish
• Smallmouth bass
• Banded sculpin
• Rainbow darter
• Northern hog sucker

Do More!

If you like splashing around in streams, consider joining a Stream Team. Volunteers check water quality, pick up litter, and improve stream habitat. Learn more at mostreamteam.org.

Where to Go

Trout survive best in spring-fed
Ozark streams that stay below
70 degrees year-round. If you’re
chasing rainbows (trout, that is),
here’s where to find them.

• Bennett Spring State Park
• Montauk State Park
• Roaring River State Park
• Maramec Spring Park
• Current River
• Eleven Point River
• North Fork of the White River

Take a Closer Look

Pick up a rock from the stream bottom and look closely. You’ll likely notice small tubes made of pebbles cemented to the rock’s surface. These “cases” were built by caddisfly larvae. They protect the baby insects’ soft, squishy bodies.

Look

The Conservation Department stocks two kinds of trout in Ozark streams. Rainbow trout have an olive green back, a silvery white belly, and a pink stripe along their sides. Brown trout have a brownish-green back, yellowish-white belly, and orange or red spots on their sides.

Take a Closer Look

Green herons often stalk stream edges, hunting for fish. Watch a heron long enough and you might see an interesting behavior. The wily birds use bait — such as insects, feathers, or twigs — to lure jittery fish into striking range.