Tag Archives: westslope cutthroat trout

Montana FWP seeks public comment on Flathead River hybrid trout removal

February 25, 2013Environmental Issues, Newshybrid trout, Montana FWP, rainbow trout, westslope cutthroat troutnfpa

Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks is seeking public comment on their current Flathead River Hybrid Trout Suppression Project . . .

As part of ongoing efforts to maintain populations of native westslope cutthroat trout, Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks is proposing to continue removing hybrid and rainbow trout from the Flathead River drainage.

The public has until March 8 to comment on the Flathead River hybrid trout suppression project’s environmental assessment draft, released earlier this month for a 30-day public review. The project could get underway a week later on March 15, according to an anticipated schedule.

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Report discusses future climate change impact on native trout

December 11, 2012Environmental Issues, Newsbull trout, fish monitoring, Flathead River Valley, westslope cutthroat troutnfpa

A just-released report discusses the impact of climate change on Rocky Mountain trout species . . .

A new research paper published in Fisheries magazine explores how a warming climate is affecting trout streams in the Flathead River basin and throughout the Rocky Mountains, and urges quick action if native trout populations are to persist in diminishing cold-water habitats.

The report examines the climate histories of five river basins in the Rocky Mountains, including the Flathead River, which is home to robust populations of native bull trout and westslope cutthroat trout. In every case, stream characteristics have been adversely affected by warming trends, which have led to higher stream temperatures and habitat fragmentation.

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Cutthroat trout’s ear bone reveals its life history

May 2, 2012Environmental Issues, Newsfish migration, otolith, westslope cutthroat troutnfpa

This recently released study on westslope cutthroat trout migration tracking is pretty interesting stuff . . .

Like a tree’s concentric growth rings, a small bone within a fish’s ear reveals a history of its growth. And according to a new study of westslope cutthroat trout in the Flathead River system, the bone also contains a record of its migration pathways – a kind of geochemical diary of its life.

The bone, called an otolith, acquires a new ring every day of the fish’s life. All fish have them, and for decades scientists have counted the bands of the bone to determine the age of a fish, as well as estimate population growth.

But a study published last week by a slate of Montana researchers in the Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences brings to light new information that the ear bones also contain a unique fingerprint of the water chemistry where the fish swims on a given day, which can be used to map the entire life history of a fish within a river network.

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Westslope cutthroat trout restoration project showing good results so far

April 15, 2012Environmental Issues, NewsMontana FWP, South Fork Flathead, westslope cutthroat troutnfpa

A so-far successful westslope cutthroat trout restoration effort in the South Fork has implications for future projects in other areas . . .

A decade-long program to restore Montana’s state fish to a chain of 21 alpine lakes above the South Fork Flathead River drainage is showing good results, a Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks official said.

Some of the lakes in the Westslope Cutthroat Trout Conservation project have been poisoned to kill non-native fish and then stocked with cutthroats. Others have been densely stocked each year with genetically pure trout to try to get rid of hybrid populations. Five remote lakes have received no treatment so far.

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