About Us

Operated by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Department of the Interior, this National Fish Hatchery (NFH) is one of many serving a vital role in the management of our country’s fishery resources. Dale Hollow NFH was established to mitigate for fishery resources which were lost due to the construction of federal water development projects in the Southeast. This is accomplished by stocking rainbow, brown, lake, and brook trout in waters impacted by federal dams. Stocking trout in public waters supports a significant recreational fishery which generates a substantial amount of economic activity for local and regional economies. This facility is also involved in the conservation of imperiled, freshwater, non-game fishes, and mussels.

Our Mission

Station Goals

  • Provide rainbow, brown, lake, and brook trout for mitigation stocking in Tennessee and Georgia.
  • Provide rainbow trout to Alabama in return for Gulf Coast striped bass eggs and fry.
  • Provide a limited number of rainbow trout for non-mitigation stocking in Tennessee under a cooperative agreement with the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency.
  • Assist in the recovery and restoration of imperiled aquatic species by developing propagation/culture techniques and rearing animals for reintroduction into the wild and for population augmentation.
  • Assist Tribal governments in managing fisheries resources on Tribal lands.
  • Work with the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency to ensure a thorough, perennial hatchery product evaluation program.
  • Provide quality environmental education opportunities.
  • Provide recreational fishing opportunities through Project Healing Waters.
  • Develop and maintain partnerships with chambers of commerce, state tourism departments, and other agencies to promote regional support for recreational fishing and the fish hatchery.
  • Maintain a "Friends Group" to gain community and regional support for the fish hatchery.
  • Establish and maintain a pollinator garden providing specific benefits to the monarch butterfly.
  • Utilize the Strategic Habitat Conservation (SHC) framework to manage Fisheries resource priorities.