The brown trout is a plain-looking river fish that a lot of players love anyway. It's tough, it suits cold climates, and it's one of the species you'll release into the Scottish Highlands reserve.
Water
- Fresh water
- A river-style tank or outdoor pond
Building a trout habitat
- Use dirt on the bottom, not sand. This is a river fish.
- Add rocks, roots and river plants.
- Give them room to swim.
Two-level trout tank
A great build is a two-tier trout habitat: two separate tanks stacked on top of each other, with a little waterfall between them. Each tank needs its own staff door. Water effects and ripples make it look like a real river. Check the ripple direction matches the flow.
Outdoor pond
In a cold climate, outdoor tropical tanks aren't practical (temperature, leaf litter, salinity). Brown trout and koi are tough enough for an outdoor pond instead. It's a nice way to bring the aquarium outside.
Mixed habitats
Brown trout can share a habitat with common rudd, Eurasian beavers and Eurasian bitterns in a European river habitat. That kind of mixed river looks great on a temperate map.
Releasing trout
Brown trout are on the Scottish Highlands species list. In career mode you'll be asked to release brown trout groups as one of the objectives. Missing brown trout is a common reason a Highlands or European reserve is a species short.
Tips
- A big trout tank with windows to the outside feels like a real river exhibit.
- Put an education board about freshwater habitats nearby. Guests rarely think about river fish.