Gila trout
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| Gila trout | ||||||||||||||
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| Oncorhynchus gilae (Miller, 1950) |
The gila trout (Oncorhynchus gilae gilae) is one of two subspecies of trout in O. gilae, the other being the Apache trout (O. g. apache). Both are native to the Southwest United States. The gila trout is a species of salmonid, related to the rainbow and cutthroat trouts. It is an endangered species.
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[edit] Range
The gila trout is native to tributaries of the Gila River in Arizona and New Mexico.
[edit] Conservation
The Gila trout has been threatened by competition and hybridization with introduced game fish such as the rainbow trout. However, the primary cause of reduced Gila trout populations is habitat loss caused by loss of water flow and shade-giving trees, caused in turn by fires, human destruction of riparian vegetation, livestock overgrazing, agricultural irrigation and water diversion, and channelization of streams in the Gila trout's native range.
By the time the Gila trout was listed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in 1967 its range had reduced from several hundred miles of stream to just 20 in the Gila Wilderness and Aldo Leopold Wilderness.[1] After listing USFWS began an aggressive program of stream restoration, removing the introduced trout, restoring and repairing riparian vegetation (to maintain cooler water temperatures), and restocking restored streams with young Gila trout. The species is now more secure than it was in the 1970s, having been moved to 10 new streams, though populations and habitat are still far below those originally established.[2] Conservationists hope to eventually delist the species and allow fishing, thus forming alliances with fishermen in order to help preserve the species.
[edit] References
- ^ Gila Trout at Center for Biological Diversity.
- ^ Springer, Craig (27 September 2006) "Gila trout down-listed to threatened status" Fishing World
- Gimenez Dixon (1996). Oncorhynchus gilae. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 09 May 2006. Listed as Endangered (EN B2ad+3c v2.3)
- Oncorhynchus gilae (TSN 161985). Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved on 24 January 2006.
- "Oncorhynchus gilae". FishBase. Ed. Ranier Froese and Daniel Pauly. 10 2005 version. N.p.: FishBase, 2005.
