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Swan River: Native Cutthroat Preservation |
North Fork Swan River: Native CutThroat Preservation
Colorado Cutthroat Trout, our only native trout species , survive only in isolated, fragmented streams throughout Colorado.
BRWG is a leading partner in the Swan River Restoration Project which will result in restored connectivity of the Swan River once reaches C and D are restored. This collaborative, multi-phase project is located in the upper Swan River drainage near the Town of Breckenridge and is designed to address damage caused to the Swan River as a result of historical dredge mining. Part of the full restoration of the Swan River includes a goal to build effective structures to protect native Cutthroat Trout which live in the North Fork of the Swan River upstream of the restoration site.
Non-native exclusion structures are one of the few effective ways to save native trout species from predation, reduce competition for food, limit hybridization through interbreeding, and help prevent disease. The focus of exotic fish exclusion projects in Colorado is centered on protecting native cutthroat trout from downstream threats. Natural or engineered exclusion structures are used to isolate cutthroat trout in headwater streams, which protects them from whirling disease, hybridization with rainbow trout and competition with brook trout and other non-native fish species.
The goals of the native trout preservation project is to:
Non-native exclusion structures are one of the few effective ways to save native trout species from predation, reduce competition for food, limit hybridization through interbreeding, and help prevent disease. The focus of exotic fish exclusion projects in Colorado is centered on protecting native cutthroat trout from downstream threats. Natural or engineered exclusion structures are used to isolate cutthroat trout in headwater streams, which protects them from whirling disease, hybridization with rainbow trout and competition with brook trout and other non-native fish species.
The goals of the native trout preservation project is to:
- Replace existing, inadequate structures to prevent non-native fish species including other trout from negatively affecting native Cutthroat populations.
- Restore and maintain a self-sustaining native trout fishery and create habitat for a diversity of native wildlife.
- Increase the native trout population by allowing natural migration and recolonization through the reconnected forks of the Swan River without detrimental influx of non-natives.
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The health of this population of native Cutthroat Trout is dependent on the completion of the Swan River Restoration. The continuation of the Swan River restoration project into the upper reaches C and D is in process, and BRWG intends to play a leading role in that effort. Read more about that project here.
Click the link to learn more about non-native fish exclusion structures. For Swan River Restoration Project plans and photos, go to: Summit County Swan River Restoration Project Page |
Page header photo courtesy of Zach Mahone.
