About - Unicorn Brookies

Hi, I’m Philip Light, author at Unicornbrookies.com! I’ve been fishing for as long as I can remember, and fly fishing since about 1989. I’ve always loved brook trout fishing more than anything else. Back before the internet, I would use my giant paper map of all the flowing waters in Pennsylvania to blue-line for brookies all over the state. Sometimes, bushwacking through oceans of mountain laurel down steep hillsides to reach remote mountain streams that probably rarely see humans.

As I’ve gotten older, I’ve started to see alarming trends on some of these brook trout streams. Where streams used to be exclusively brook trout, I’m now seeing nonnative brown trout. Even where brown trout haven’t displaced brook trout, I still see a decline in the numbers of brookies present compared to my youth.

In an effort to better understand the fish I love so much, I’ve spent considerable time researching scientific papers, examining natural resource management in other states, studying brook trout biology and ecology, and gathering any information I can get my hands on. This research is continually shaping my opinion on how our brook trout are managed in Pennsylvania. This blog serves as an outlet for those opinions with the goal of informing and influencing others so that we might have a more secure future for our state fish.

Philip Light

https://www.unicornbrookies.com/about/ Philip was born and raised in Bedford, Pennsylvania. After moving to the Pittsburgh region for school and work, he returned to Bedford, where he resides today. Philip is pursuing a bachelor of science in Environmental Policy and Management from Purdue University and currently works as a design consultant in the luxury fashion industry. As a young child, he spent countless hours fishing and exploring the small freestone streams near his home. Philip soon discovered fly fishing and has been an avid fly fisher for thirty years. His fascination with fish led to his involvement in water and fish conservation. Over the last several years, Philip has been involved in conservation projects, including at an international level, with U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Conservation International. More recently, he served as national vice-chair of Native Fish Coalition, building relationships with state government agencies such as the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, Department of Environmental Protection, Fish & Boat Commission, and conservation non-profits. His primary focus is informing and educating anglers, negotiating with stakeholders in the government and the private sector, and protecting and enhancing wild native brook trout habitats in Pennsylvania.

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