Everything you wanted to know: Colorado River cutthroat trout

Colorado River cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii pleuriticus)​ Species status and summary: The Colorado River cutthroat trout (CRCT) historically occupied most cool water habitats of the Colorado River watersheds in Colorado, southern Wyoming, eastern Utah, extreme northwestern New Mexico and northeastern Arizona. Currently, however, Colorado River cutthroat trout occupy approximately 16 percent of their historic range, primarily…

Chasing the Wyoming Cutt-Slam and keeping the wolves away

Looking back, I saw Sweet, who had coyly picked a honey hole on a backwater around a small island I didn’t even notice, who was looking upriver at me and grinning ear to ear. At that moment, I remember thinking he resembled a child showing off his hard work.

Meet the angler who is trying to complete the Western Native Trout Challenge this summer

Casting for trout in a mountain lake.

“I felt this was an important chapter of history to experience and record,” said Daniel Ritz. “When I personally started to learn more about the history and status of the West’s native species, I quickly realized how change in the West since the arrival of Europeans and the health of its trout species were intertwined. I also quickly realized I was not the only angler, let alone citizen, who wasn’t aware of the state of our native trout.”

Building bridges for logging trucks … and native cutthroat trout

“People don’t necessarily think about the necessity of fish to be able to move like terrestrial animals,” said Anna Senecal, an aquatic habitat biologist with Wyoming Game and Fish. “We all know about bird migrations and we know about ungulate elk migrations, but fish need to move as well.”