[pt1e]

Do you think by looking at a trout's eye that you can determine that it has 'given up the ghost'?

 

[troutdoorsman]

A clouded over look in the eyes indicates impending death.

 

[Trout 2003]

I'll agree with this. I've seen it in the past. I once caught a wild tiger trout that had that look. I had no doubt that it was going to be dead in no time.

 

[pt1e]

I'm asking because I caught a trout recently that was a larger trout and I could not horse it in. That being said, when it got to the bank it was tired. It had the dead eye look, and I didn't think it had a chance. I didn't give up on it and I revived it for a good two minutes...and it swam off. Went back to the same hole the next day and it was there. (only big fish in the hole)
I know the reviving helps, but I was surprised with this one. I also know you cant revive a fish and then immediately dump it into fast current. I find that a very slow current and not slack water is best.

 

[troutdoorsman]

This is the eye of death. This big rainbow was in a stocked stream that gets way too warm.

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[SuperX2Nut]

That rainbow looks like it has a bacterial eye infection, the eye condition is not likely caused by water temperature or impending mortality.

 

[troutdoorsman]

It was sitting in 2in of water up along the side of the bank. I picked it up with my bare hands. I don't know as much about bacterial eye infections in trout as you do, but I am sure that this trout died very soon after I left it. I measured the water temperature there and it was 74 degrees at 11:30am. This was last august. There are always substantial die offs on this stream during the late summer months.

I am not sure what about that situation would lead you to believe that rainbow will survive. Don't you think that maybe a cold water species living in luke warm water might not be as healthy as it could be, and maybe have a depressed immune system and become more susceptible to infection and premature death?

 

[Trout Traveler]

Trout in water above 70 degrees are more susceptible to infection.

Trout that survive in streams that get warm do so by finding springs within the stream, moving to deeper water, or migrating to or near cold water tributaries. Trout can stand water above 70 degrees if it has a lot oxygen. Brown trout are much better at that than other trout species

 

[SuperX2Nut]

It was sitting in 2in of water up along the side of the bank. I picked it up with my bare hands. I don't know as much about bacterial eye infections in trout as you do, but I am sure that this trout died very soon after I left it. I measured the water temperature there and it was 74 degrees at 11:30am. This was last august. There are always substantial die offs on this stream during the late summer months.

I am not sure what about that situation would lead you to believe that rainbow will survive. Don't you think that maybe a cold water species living in luke warm water might not be as healthy as it could be, and maybe have a depressed immune system and become more susceptible to infection and premature death?

If you would read my reply, I noted that they discoloration of the eye is a result of an eye infection, the eye infection is not killing the fish at this time. The condition of he stream could be killing the fish, if it was as warm as you say.

Saying that the eye is the cause of death is like saying someone who had an open chest wound died because of pink eye.

 

[SuperX2Nut]

The trout's eye is not directly caused by the water temperature. However, most bacterial strains thrive in warmer water. Take columnaris for example, it is practically non existent in temperatures below 50' F. Ever been steelhead fishing in Erie in mid to late September, and seen the steelhead jumping out of the water in the mouths of the streams? That is a result of a bacterial infection like columnaris, or a parasite infestation such as Trichodina. The warm water also causes the fish the be stressed and allow it to become more susceptible to infection and disease.

In the case of the steelhead I used for an example, you have multiple factors that can allow for a fish to become sick. Warm water early in the fall, along with spawning stress can really hamper a salmonids ability to fight off infection. Now throw in a bunch of guys fishing for them in shallow creeks, and perhaps even being caught and handled, and you can see how a fish could become ill.