Dale Hollow National Fish Hatchery U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service 145 Fish Hatchery Road Celina, 38551-6268 931/243 2443 http://www.fws.gov/dalehollow Dale Hollow U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service National Fish Hatchery 1 800/344 WILD

June 2017

photo: Hiwassee River, Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency Over a century ago, it was recognized Dale National Fish Hatchery System Hollow Since the inception of the U.S. Fish that conservation measures were National and Wildlife Service (Service) in 1871, Fish fisheries conservation has figured necessary to maintain good fishing Hatchery paramount to people and economies. in our public waters. Fishing has The National Fish Hatchery System (NFHS) is comprised of a network always been one of America’s leading of Service field stations located throughout the nation that work with forms of outdoor recreation. The tribal, local, and state governments, primary responsibility of the Dale other federal agencies, and foreign nations to Hollow National Fish Hatchery is to conserve raise rainbow, brown, brook, and lake fisheries. trout which will help preserve this The NFHS has a hand in tradition for present as well as future conserving rare imperiled species generations of Americans. and common game fishes: Construction of a dam, regardless of Pacific salmon, native western the type, alters the entire environment trout, diminutive darters in the within a river. The first and most heartland, lake obvious change takes place when the trout in the deep Great Lakes, striped bass that ring the Gulf and Atlantic fills, but many changes Seaboard, and rainbow trout in the Southeast. That’s only to name a few may also take place below the dam. fishes. Plants, salamanders, crayfish, Some of them might be subtle, and insects, and freshwater mussels are also beneficiaries of the work others, like those in the Dale Hollow conducted by NFHS personnel. tailwaters, might be quite drastic. Dale Hollow National Fish Hatchery The Dale Hollow National Fish Dale Hollow Dam produced a large, Hatchery (NFH) was established in 1965. The hatchery is a mitigation deep reservoir in which the water hatchery, producing approximately 325,000 pounds of rainbow, brown, stratifies into temperature layers brook, and lake trout annually during the summer and fall months. for restocking the cold tailwaters below Dale Hollow and other dams. The water released into the Obey which will support trout are also stocked. Small numbers of River comes from the deep, cool layer. trout are stocked into non-mitigation It caused a loss of the original warm waters in Tennessee and contiguous states under cooperative agreements water fish habitat and replaced it with with State game and fish agencies. the present cold tailwater. The hatchery’s Life-Cycle of Rainbow Trout water supply comes from Dale Egg to Fingerling Hollow Reservoir Undeveloped Hatching Fingerling at a depth of Egg Fry Trout more than 90 feet below the water surface. The temperature at this depth is cold year-round, ranging between 40° and 60°F. Eyed Egg Sac Fry Water is gravity-fed to a strainer unit, located on hatchery grounds, Natural Life which prevents dead fish and debris Trout eggs are deposited in prepared from blocking downstream water redds, or nests in the gravel of stream supply lines. The water is then piped beds and hatch in 8 weeks to the outdoor raceways and indoor or more. A young fish or fry lives for 3 fingerling rearing tanks. Prior to use, to 4 weeks on food absorbed from the it passes through packed columns yolk sac. where the water is degassed and aerated. Rearing water flows through About the time the yolk is completely the hatchery at rates up to 16,000 absorbed, the fingerling emerges gallons per minute. from the gravel and feeds on microscopic aquatic organisms. Alteration of habitat by impoundment, drought, pollution, From the many eggs deposited in and competition with aquatic invasive the gravel, only a very few young species have all played a part in fish are produced and survive to placing a number of the Southeast’s adulthood. Most of the eggs and aquatic species in peril. In order to young fish die from natural causes address this problem, Dale Hollow such as floods, silt, drought and National Fish Hatchery is involved predators. Under natural conditions, in the recovery and restoration of relatively few trout reach catchable imperiled aquatic species, including size to be taken by anglers. freshwater mussels and non-game fish. 4 3 5 1. Visitor Parking 2 1 2. Hatchery Building: Visitor Center, Offices, Fingerling Production Room, 6 Feed Storage Room The visitor center provides information pertaining to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, National 7 Fish Hatchery System, and Dale DALE HOLLOW National Fish Hatchery Hollow National Fish Hatchery. A short presentation concerning coldwater fishery mitigation efforts 8 in the Southeast is offered for your viewing pleasure. Species of fish weighed out into buckets, according to a set schedule, and hand-fed to small fish in indoor tanks and outdoor raceways.

3. Bulk Feed Storage Bins Once the fish reach 4-5 inches long, they are fed which were native to the a pelleted feed. This feed before the construction of Dale is stored in bulk storage Hollow Dam are on display in the five bins located between the aquariums. Accessible restrooms are Hatchery Building and located in this area. Garage/Maintenance Building. Pelleted feed Visitors can stop by one of the offices if is distributed to fish they have questions or need assistance. in outdoor raceways, A staff member is usually available to according to a set schedule, with a help. special truck fitted with a feed hopper and blower system. Spawning operations are 4. Paint Storage Building, Garage/ not conducted Maintenance Building at this hatchery. Paint and other chemicals are stored Fertilized eggs in the paint storage building. The are received from mechanical aspects of the hatchery’s other federal maintenance and operation hatcheries and are conducted in the cooperating state garage and maintenance hatcheries via overnight shipping in areas. For safety reasons, special egg-shipping cartons and are these buildings are not placed into hatching jars. open to the public. Eggs hatch approximately 10-14 5. Duplex Strainer Unit days after they are placed in the This structure prevents hatching jars. Following hatch, the large debris from entering fry are placed into concrete tanks the water supply system to grow. The fry absorb the yolk sac and blocking downstream after another 10-14 days and swim up lines. It is designed so from the bottom of the tanks to the that it can be cleaned water surface. At this time, they are periodically without fed specially formulated feed hourly. interrupting the water supply to the When the fingerlings reach a length hatchery. For safety reasons, access to of 1-2 inches, they are moved into this structure is not open to the public. outdoor raceways to give them room to grow. 6. Raceway Area Fish are fed and cared for until they Fish are started out on very small feed reach the desired stocking size. The granules. As the fish grow, they are fed raceway area is covered with netting progressively larger size granules until designed to exclude fish-eating birds. It they graduate to pelleted feed. The takes approximately 16 months to raise smaller sized feed is stored in bags at a trout from the egg stage to a 9-inch one end of the Hatchery Building. It is length at this hatchery. Feeding frequency ranges from twice a day for the larger fish to 5 to 6 times per day for the smaller size fish. As the fish grow, heavy raceways of fish are split into empty raceways to give the fish room to grow. Throughout the year, approximately 1.9 million rainbow, brown, brook, and lake trout are harvested from the raceways and distributed by truck to stocking sites in Tennessee, National Fish Hatcheries Southeast Region Alabama, and Georgia. State fish and game •Wolf Creek agencies assist with the fish Erwin Edenton Dale Norfork Mammoth Hollow Spring distribution and manage Orangeburg Greers Private Ferry Chattahoochee John Allen Forest Bears the various trout fisheries Bluff Natchitoches Warm Springs throughout the Southeast.

Welaka Dale Hollow National Warm Water Hatchery Fish Hatchery is one of 14 Cold Water Hatchery Federal hatcheries located in the Southeast Region. These hatcheries serve a vital role in the management of our fishery resources. Enjoy Your Visit Visitors are welcome to tour the 7. Drum Filter Building hatchery. During your visit, please The hatchery has an effluent feel free to ask questions you may treatment system in place to remove have concerning the hatchery. The fish waste from cleaning water before hatchery is open from 7:30 am to the water enters the discharge stream 3:30 pm daily. Accessible restrooms, below the hatchery. The system is drinking water, and parking are based on drum filter technology. As available. the drums spin, they allow most of the incoming water to pass through the Special group tours can be arranged sides of the revolving drums and out by calling the hatchery in advance of into the receiving stream. your visit.

8. Settling Pond The hatchery sponsors several Concentrated fish waste is pumped special events during the year. The from the drum filter building to a annual Kids’ Fishing Rodeo is held settling pond where the solids settle on Tennessee Free Fishing Day. out onto the bottom of the pond. Participants can fish for rainbow trout The fish waste is broken down by in the creek below the hatchery, win aerobic bacteria in the water. Floating prizes, and enjoy free food and drink. aerators supply the bacteria with The annual Wilderness Day Camp oxygen. is held every July. Children can take Dale Hollow Dam Recreation Park, managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), is located between the hatchery grounds and the Obey River. Also managed by the USACE is nearby Pleasant Grove Park, located on the shores of Dale Hollow Reservoir. Standing Stone State Rustic Park, located just across the Clay and Overton County line, offers camping, fishing, picnicking, hiking and swimming opportunities.

Thank you for Visiting! part in outdoor learning activities and Your awareness of our resource and take part in sports such as archery its needs is the basic foundation for and fly fishing. Both events are free support of healthy fish and wildlife and target children 15 years of age populations. and younger. Please contact the hatchery for more We enjoyed having you visit the information. hatchery and invite you to return often. Remember, this is your fish Friends of Dale Hollow National Fish hatchery. Hatchery, Inc. The Friends Group is a non-profit group dedicated to supporting the hatchery and its mission. Comprised of volunteers, the Friends Group co- sponsors special events and conducts educational programs and tours. New membership is always welcome.

For Additional Information Contact Dale Hollow C

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