Learning from Trout DNA, with Helen Neville

The Orvis Fly-Fishing Podcast

James Hathaway

Bass, Fishing, Bonefish, Wilderness, Flyfishing, Trout, How To, Steelhead, Bluegill, Fly, Orvis, Sports, Salmon, Panfish, Education, Rosenbauer

4.8 • 1.9K Ratings

🗓️ 2 October 2023

⏱️ 76 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Helen Neville [38:57] is Trout Unlimited's senior scientist and also an expert in trout genetics. In this interview, we talk about what scientists have learned about trout evolution and relationships in the past decade. They now have tools at their disposal that can tell them how closely two trout populations are related, how much hatchery trout have interbred with wild populations, and how various races and subspecies of trout have evolved. You'll also learn how they extract this DNA and study it—but you had better review your high school or college genetics first because it gets a bit complex.

In the Fly Box this week, we have some great questions and a couple helpful tips from listeners, including:

A listener from Germany relates a horrible experience he had with a guide
Can I underline my Orvis bamboo fly rod?
What do you think putting a strip of material on a leader as a "worm attractor"?
A great tip from a listener of how to make a paddle and rod rest for a canoe
A warning from a listener that the drop shot method of fishing nymphs is illegal in California—and possibly other places.
A listener wants to know if he can effectively use the Euro nymph technique with a 10-foot, 5-weight rod
What is the best way to get polarized glasses for someone who needs a strong prescription. Do clip-ons work well?
Should I lubricate the zipper on my Pro Zippered Waders?
When fighting fish, is tippet size or rod weight the deciding factor?
When by myself, how do I take a photo of a fish so that I can later judge its size?
Why is fall fishing better? Do trout feed heavily in anticipation of winter?
What size leader and tippet should I use for carp, and should I use my 6-weight or 8-weight rod?
I tie my tippet directly to my fly line for small stream brook trout. What advantages will I have by going to a tapered leader?
Do brook trout in a small meadow stream move throughout the season?

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	Hi and welcome to the Orvis fly fishing podcast, this is your host Tom Rosemar, and my
0:15.7	guest this week is Helen Neville. Helen is a senior scientist for Trout Unlimited,
0:24.4	and Helen is also has a background in genetics. I wanted to talk to Helen about what we've
0:33.4	learned with the recent breakthroughs in genetics, what we've learned about trout populations
0:40.8	and about the inner relationship between trout populations and the different species. I think
0:48.1	it's a fascinating discussion, talking about can you tell a hatchery fish from a wild fish
0:54.1	by looking at their DNA, and how do they do this? How do they extract their DNA? I got
1:01.3	to warn you, you may want to go back and review a little bit of your high school biology because
1:09.0	it does get a little scientific and geeky, but for those of you who are into this kind of
1:13.8	stuff, I think you'll find it a fascinating interview. And we're going to do the flybox, but
1:20.9	before we do, got a product for you. One of my favorite products is the Mirage LT Reels. These
1:31.1	reels are made in New Hampshire, about an hour away from the Orvis rod shop, and they're 100%
1:39.5	made in USA, in New Hampshire, in the one shop. It's the same shop that makes the real
1:45.4	seats on our recon and Helios rods, and also makes the Orvis pliers. And I'm very, very fond
1:56.5	of the products that come out of the shop, and the Mirage LT Reel, particularly the LT2,
2:02.4	if you're a trout angler, is just an amazing reel. It's a beautiful piece of machinery. It has a
2:13.1	very, very smooth drag, and yet it can be a strong drag. And you know, often, often when I'm fishing
2:22.2	small streams where I know the fish isn't going to take a lot of line, I'll use a CFO reel because
2:28.8	I'm a traditionalist, and I'm in trout fishing, and I just love the CFO reel because it's light,
2:35.2	and I like the sound of them, and I like the looks of them. But if I'm going on a bigger river,
2:41.1	you know, the Delaware, the Madison, the Henry's fork, any of the green, any of the bigger rivers
2:46.8	where a fish might really take some line. And I want a little bit stronger drag to slow the fish
	...

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