Ohrid, 23 January 2025 (MIA) — Broodstock collection is in progress at Lake Ohrid to propagate the endemic Ohrid trout by capturing mature individuals from the lake during their spawning season and using them for breeding purposes. This will help protect the species, Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Economy Cvetan Tripunovski said Thursday.

"This activity is very important for our ministry and the state, as it preserves the Ohrid trout as one of our national treasures," Tripunovski said during his visit to the site of broodstock collection.

The agriculture minister pledged more financial support in the following year for the collection of fish to be artificially mated at the Ohrid's Hydrobiological Institute hatchery and the hatchery in Shum near Struga and produce more offspring to stock Lake Ohrid with juvenile fish.

According to fish breeders, since Jan. 16, when the broodstock collection started, 250 thousand eggs have been collected. The plan is to stock Lake Ohrid in 2025 with 1,050,000 hatchery-reared juveniles, of which 600,000 reared at the Hydrobiological Institute and 450,000 reared at the Shum hatchery.

This is the first Ohrid trout stocking in six years.

"I'm sorry this wasn't done in the previous years, practically contributing to an even greater endangerment to the trout species," Minister Tripunovski said, adding that broodstock collection and fish stocking would intensify going forward.

The activities are being implemented by the Ohrid Hydrobiological Institute with the financial support of the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Economy.

The Ohrid trout (Salmo letnica) species has been driven to the verge of extinction in recent years, mostly due to overfishing and poaching.

Since the summer of 2024 alone, 709 fishing nets, with a total length of 47 km, have been seized from poachers. mr/