But I think there's a niche for them. Yet among anglers, environmentalists and even fisheries biologists, the experimental program is controversial. As the open-water fishing season begins today, some question why the state would even consider stocking rainbows, a nonnative species, when Maine already boasts the best wild brook trout fishery in the East. They fear rainbows might not stay where the state puts them and might harm native trout. The benefits of rainbows, especially in waters that can't naturally produce trout, may be substantial.
Rainbow trout grow fast, get big, taste great and are fun to catch, because they jump like salmon.
That's my opinion, and I'm 100 percent for it. As for risk, the waters chosen for the experimental program have few wild trout, already are routinely stocked with hatchery fish and either have rainbows now or have had them in the past. We think there's a minimal risk of impacting other native species,'' said John Boland, regional biologist in southern Maine. Rainbows may not be natives, but they've been stocked in Maine waters off and on for at least 70 years, including a state program from 1968-78. Rainbows also slip into the state's waters from New Hampshire, where 300,000 are stocked annually.