Today’s fish wouldn’t feel out of place at the North Pole!

We begin the Northeastern US & #GreatLakes leg of the #Fishmas road trip by heading to far northern Maine to find a remnant subspecies of Arctic char (Salvelinus alpinus) called the blueback trout #25DaysofFishmas

Arctic char (also spelled charr) is a member of the Salmonidae family and is notorious for having lots of distinct morphological variants or “morphs” - meaning there’s a *lot* of variation in how they look/act depending on where you find them #25DaysofFishmas

Arctic char are circumpolar (generally found around the north pole, above 45° latitude) and are the world’s most northern freshwater fish. Maine’s char populations represent about as far south as they can be found in the wild #25DaysofFishmas

Sometimes called the “most variable vertebrate on Earth,” Arctic char’s large variability in size and life history may be an adaptation to the extreme + unpredictable ecological conditions of their homes: Arctic ecosystems and northern/high-elevation lakes #25DaysofFishmas

Northern New England/SE Canada is home to a subspecies of Arctic char (Salvelinus alpinus oquassa) commonly called blueback trout (in Maine) or red trout (Québec). This “Laurentian lineage” is also found in New Brunswick + used to exist in New Hampshire/Vermont #25DaysofFishmas

Maine's bluebacks are only found in about a dozen lakes in state's far north - most of which are remote + require a decent hike. The difficulty of accessing char waters, as well as their small size (rarely >16in/40cm), makes them not a super popular sport fish #25DaysofFishmas

Male Arctic char are known for their bright spawning colors, which bluebacks develop in late summer before fall spawning. Their colors can vary from golden, to pink, to even full-body neon orange, which is, and I cannot stress this enough, A Look #25DaysofFishmas

The New Hampshire/Vermont Arctic char populations are extirpated (locally extinct) and its range in Maine has been steadily shrinking due in part to introduced species like lake trout (which prey on them) + rainbow smelt (pictured here, which compete with them) #25DaysofFishmas