Lahontan cutthroat trout biologists have a new tool for conservation

On the screen appears a map of Northern Nevada with a slice of Eastern California. Colorful, diamond shaped markers are peppered across the map signifying recovery projects for Lahontan cutthroat trout. Faith Machuca, a Lahontan cutthroat trout recovery ecologist for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Reno, Nevada, walks me through the recently released database. “So, you can change the occupied transparency and...” bright green lines appear on the map. The lines highlight streams occupied by the threatened fish, stretching from Lake Tahoe to the edge of western Utah. What Machuca is showing me is called the Conservation Efforts Database, or CED for short. The CED is a web-tool that land and species managers can use to collectively archive and display conservation actions on an interactive map. Data for population demographics, habitat, genetics, and project information are stored in the database.

A lahontan cutthroat trout in fallen leaf lake. credit: usfws

The CED will benefit stakeholders by breaking down information silos and providing access to all available data in real time, painting a picture of recovery efforts and their effectiveness. This makes recovery planning faster, more collaborative, and more efficient. According to Sean Vogt, the Service’s Lahontan cutthroat trout recovery coordinator, nothing like the CED has been tried before when it comes to Lahontan cutthroat trout recovery.  

Lahontan cutthroat trout genetics expand conservation options

There’s a species extinction crisis happening right now, and that includes trout.

Extinction is evident across our landscapes thanks to things like habitat loss and disconnection, non-native species, and, of course, climate change.

One species threatened with extinction is the famed Lahontan Cutthroat Trout (LCT). Many anglers are familiar with this fish thanks to photos of the beasts that have recently been coming out of Pyramid Lake. Less well known are the other 70 or so stream populations across the range. These trout generally exist today in small, high mountain streams and range greatly in size, health and abundance in their habitats.

The fish has been listed on the Endangered Species list since the 1970s, and Trout Unlimited’s science team has been lending its hand to understand what factors are at play and realize the possibilities of restoring them and their habitat.