Key points
- Identification: Feature a combination of characteristics from both parent species:
- A faint-to-bright orange/red throat slash (like Westslope Cutthroat Trout).
- A pinkish-red lateral band along the body (like Rainbow Trout).
- Heavy spotting throughout, particularly towards the tail.
- Where: Commonly encountered in river systems where native cutthroats share water with stocked or wild rainbow populations, such as the St. Mary River float reaches .
- Tactics: Readily targeted with dry-fly attractors (Royal Wulffs, foam patterns) during hatches, or using nymphs and streamers in swift current seams.
Regulations (Region 4, 2025–2027)
- Quota Inclusion: Treated under the aggregate trout/char daily quota of 5 (only 1 over 50 cm, only 2 from streams). Regs do not distinguish hybrids from pure strains; they are counted under the same limit as rainbows or cutthroats .
Open questions
- The genetic impact of cutbow hybridization on pure westslope cutthroat populations in East Kootenay tributaries.
Related
- Westslope Cutthroat Trout — parent species.
- Rainbow Trout — parent species.
- St. Mary River — notable hybrid fishery.
