yes

Whirling Disease: Spores

The whirling disease parasite, Myxobolus cerebralis, forms small spores like this one, photographed with an electron microscope. The spores remain viable for dozens of years in the mud, until they are eaten by a small worm known as Tubifex tubifex. When the worms die, they release another phase of the parasite known as a triactinomyxon (TAM) that is ready to infect another fish and complete the life cycle.

Photo by Ronald P. Hedrick

World Record Trout

Adam Konrad caught world-record, 43-pound rainbow trout in a Saskatchewan lake. His prize probably escaped from a nearby aquaculture facility and had been manipulated to contain an extra set of chromosomes—a feature that makes such fish grow much faster and larger than normal.

Photo courtesy of Otto and Adam Konrad

Fish on Creatine

A group at the University of Missouri is studying the effects of creatine--the same supplement used by athletes like home-run slugger Mark McGwire--on rainbow trout. Here the fish swims in a Plexiglas tube to measure its endurance. "Sportsmen would likely pay a premium for a fishing experience where the fish struck the bait harder and fought longer," said one of the researchers in a press release.

Photo by Steve Morse

Whirling Disease TAM

Under a microscope, a Myxobolus cerebralis triactinomyxon looks like a grappling hook. At this stage, the parasite is ready to attach to a fish. When it does, three coiled springs in the tip (the dark portion on the right) shoot into the skin, providing a secure entrance route for the germ capsule.

Photo by Vicki Blazer, U.S. Geological Survey

Fish with Whirling Disease

Most infected rainbow trout die from whirling disease at a very young age. Those that do survive usually have deformed skeletons and skulls, bulging eyes, and black tails, like the ones pictured above.

Photo by Sascha L. Hallett

Fishing for Rainbows, 1972

In the decades that followed World War II, reservoirs were built all over the country. Visiting them to fish for rainbow trout became one of America's favorite pasttimes. This picture was taken in 1972.

National Archives ARC Identifier 542647 / Local Identifier 412-DA-154

A Typical Planting Run

A diagram of a typical aerial fish planting run, drawn by one of the pioneers: Carrol Faist.

Aerial Stocking

After years of stocking the lakes of the Sierra Nevada using pack animals, the California Department of Fish and Game began using airplanes in the 1940s. Many of the lakes previously had no fish.

Loading the Plane

The California Department of Fish and Game pioneered aerial fish planting in the years following World War II. In this photo, taken about 1950 in Bishop, CA, Dave Ward, Lee Talbot, Carrol Faist, and Jim McGregor prepare to load an WWII-surplus Beechcraft C-45 with fingerlings.

Chalk Cliffs Rearing Unit

Because they need abundant clear water, fish culture facilities tend to be located in beautiful places. This retrofitted trailer is part of Colorado's Chalk Cliffs Rearing Unit, in Nathrop, Colorado.

Photo by Anders Halverson