Calcasieu Lake gets 50,000+ hatchery red drum in Louisiana’s first restock drop

More than 50,000 hatchery-raised red drum went into Calcasieu Lake at the West Cove Boat Ramp on Sabine National Wildlife Refuge, the flagship release of Louisiana’s first redfish restocking program. American Press published the account Sept. 17; the drop itself was the Friday before.

CCA Louisiana, the Recreational Fisheries Research Institute, and the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries ran the release. Cameron LNG and Sempra Infrastructure funded it. Fingerlings were raised at the University of Southern Mississippi’s Gulf Coast Research Laboratory; Southeastern Louisiana University is also named as a research partner. Hatchery staff acclimated the fish to local temperature and salinity before volunteers bucketed them from the trailer to boats for canal release, with the rest going in from the dock.

CCA Louisiana executive director Rad Trascher called it years of work that needed the right science, partners, and place. RFRI’s Randy Pausina said the program uses Louisiana broodstock, genetic identification, strategic sites, and long-term monitoring so managers can measure survival, movement, and contribution to the wild stock. West Cove was chosen with LDWF and hatchery staff for suitable estuarine nursery habitat. Red drum remain a cornerstone recreational species for the state’s coastal fishing economy.

Photo: Ryan Page / CCA Louisiana via American Press (volunteers at the hatchery trailer, West Cove Boat Ramp, Sabine NWR).

This is a The Gillnet news desk summary, not a reprint.

Source: American Press — More than 50,000 red drum released into Calcasieu Lake (Sept. 17, 2026).