The strain of brown trout we have in Missouri is a combination of two types that were originally brought over from Europe in the 1890s. One type came from Loch Leven , near Edinburgh, Scotland, and the other type came from slow meadow-type tributaries of the Rhine River in Germany. Rainbows, on the other hand, originally inhabited swift mountain streams. With these vastly different backgrounds, it is not surprising that rainbows and browns behave far differently. One big difference between the two species is that browns are much more strongly attracted to large objects in the stream than rainbows are.
Brown trout are much more wary than rainbows and are usually far harder to catch.
Rainbows are more adaptable in their spawning requirements and can sustain themselves in Ozark streams where wild brown trout populations cannot. Available in the office of each trout park are flyers containing regulations and a map for that park. Designed by Randy Noyes, these flyers are very helpful. Elsewhere on this Web site you will find links to maps of the parks currently available on the Internet. I know there is a Montauk in the state of New York.