The two most difficult trout species to tell apart are going to be our Montana native cutthroats. Vol. Although commonly associated with the state of Montana, the historic range of Westslope Cutthroat Trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii lewisi) is the most widespread geographically among the 14 subspecies of inland cutthroat trout. Prior to restoration work, genetically pure populations only existed in Last Chance Creek and Oxbow/Geode Creek complex. Protection of native Yellowstone cutthroat trout in Yellowstone Lake, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, Edited by US Department of the Interior, National Park Service. Westslope Vs. Yellowstone Cutthroat Trout Date: 10/23/2019. As with other cutthroat subspecies, the distribution and numbers of WCT have declined due to human influences such as livestock grazing and other agricultural practices, logging, road-building, mining, dam construction, loss of riparian habitat, erosion, sedimentation, and placement of barriers to fish migration. A range expansion project is being conducted in Goose Lake and two other small, historically fishless lakes in the Firehole drainage. ©2019 Western Native Trout Initiative. 2005. They now occupy less than 10% of their historic range in Alberta and are listed as Threatened under the federal Species at Risk Act. Varley, J.D. Gresswell, ed., Status and management of interior stocks of cutthroat trout, 45–52. Native fish underpin natural food webs and have great local economic significance. The Westslope Cutthroat Trout's historical range was all of Montana west of the Continental Divide as well as the upper Missouri River drainage. Westslope cutthroat trout and bull trout are increasingly at risk, however, from the severe, negative effects of non-native fish, which were introduced to Glacier via fish stocking that began soon after the park was established in 1910 and continued until the 1970s. Westslope cutthroat trout have an olive/bronze colored back and greenish-gold colored sides. Koel, T.M., P.E. The other two are coastal (native) and Lahontan (non-native). Jul 2, 2013 - Photos of the beautiful westslope cutthroat and fly fishing for westslope cutthroat. Westslope cutthroat trout fared little better, with most of the population being eliminated or hybridized with rainbow trout by the early 2000s. WCT currently occupy about 33,500 miles (59%) of the nearly 56,500 miles of historical habitat. Koel, T.M., D.L. It’s kind of our heritage to hike or pack into wild and remote places, to camp and fish. Westslope cutthroat trout are a species at risk. Heckmann, R. 1994. Fort Collins, CO: National Park Service, Water Resources Division. Reinhart, D.P., S.T. All rights reserved. As a member of the genus Oncorhynchus, it is one of the Pacific trout, a group that … Concerns surrounding the species have grown over the years as populations have … Koel, T.M., P.E. Mount Adams (Washington) - Wikipedia Recent years have seen a decline in the numbers of native fish species, which include: bull trout, westslope cutthroat trout, northern whitefish, and northern pikeminnow. 2013. The 2017 Alberta Fish Sustainability Index (FSI) assessment (excluding National Parks) reaffirmed these conservation designations, with all popul… In R.E. Nonnative fish removal was conducted in 2011 and staff stocked fry from 2013 to 2015. In 2006, Yellowstone began efforts to restore WCT in East Fork Specimen Creek and High Lake by constructing a fish barrier, removing nonnative fish, and stocking genetically pure WCT. Without our help, wild stocks may completely disappear. Currently the only remaining genetically pure native westslope cutthroat trout are found in about 600 miles of Missouri River tributaries. You can tell it’s a westslope cutthroat by its spot pattern – the majority of the black spots are found on the back end of the fish with rather few ahead of the dorsal fin.