Norwegian record Rainbow trout: 11.5 kg

About Rainbow trout

The rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) is a Pacific trout native to western North America. It was introduced to Norway in the early 1900s for sport fishing and is now widely farmed. Compared with brown trout it has a pinkish-violet band along the flank and gill cover, and dense black spots that also cover the dorsal, adipose and tail fins. In Norway it very rarely forms self-sustaining populations, but escaped farm fish regularly turn up along the coast and in rivers, especially in western and central Norway. It feeds on insects, crustaceans and small fish and takes spoons, spinners, flies and worms. The Norwegian rod record is about 11.5 kg from the Sognefjord (1998); worldwide it can top 20 kg. Norway lists it as an alien species with high ecological risk (HI), partly because it can carry the salmon parasite Gyrodactylus salaris. As a non-native fish it is Not Applicable (NA) on the Norwegian Red List 2021.

Sources: Artsdatabanken, Store norske leksikon, Wikipedia

• Habitat: Ferskvann
• Best month: Juni

See the species guide

Biggest Rainbow trout in FishComp

Caught a Rainbow trout? Log it in FishComp.

How to register a Norwegian record

1. Norwegian sport-fishing records are registered with Villmarksliv, not with FishComp. Read the rules before you do anything else with the fish.
2. Records are based on weight and approved by a jury. You give the weight and length, where it was caught, the gear you used and any witnesses.
3. Keep your photos and notes from the catch. Logging it in FishComp does not register a record.