Written By
Cutthroat trout are the only trout native to Utah, but not that long ago the state’s iconic cutthroats were in jeopardy of disappearing. Thanks to conservation measures supported in part by Sport Fish Restoration funds, Utah’s four cutthroat subspecies have made a remarkable comeback. Today, the Bear River, Bonneville, Colorado River, and Yellowstone cutthroat trout are found in waterways throughout the state and The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources (DWR) offers anglers the opportunity to catch native trout that were nearly lost.
“From fears of disappearing to a special fishing challenge created to highlight the restoration success, our cutthroats have come a long way,” said Coldwater Sportfish Coordinator Trina Hedrick. For centuries, cutthroat trout traversed the lakes and the interconnected waterways of the West. However, by the turn of the century Utah’s cutthroat faced a growing number of threats from habitat loss and fragmentation, decreased water quality, the introduction of non-native species, and historic overharvest to feed growing communities and mining towns. By the 1960s, cutthroat populations were only a fraction of historic levels and interest in protecting Utah’s disappearing native trout was growing. Before restoration efforts could take place, the state had to find out just how many cutthroat trout remained. In the case of the Bonneville cutthroat, many doubted that a genetically pure population still existed.
“Starting in the 1970s state and federal biologists set out to sample difficult to access or rarely surveyed areas to find remaining cutthroat populations,” added Hedrick. “Thankfully, pure strains of all four subspecies remained in these isolated areas and these populations would be the beginning of the state’s restoration efforts with fertilized eggs being transported to hatcheries for grow out and stocking.” What started with a few hundred fertilized eggs in the 1970s, has grown into the largest assisted migration in Utah stocking millions of cutthroat trout each year.
Increasing Trout Numbers and Stocking Waterways
Today, state biologists have continued to collect eggs and milt from Utah’s wild cutthroat to raise in state hatcheries and release back into waterways. DWR currently operates 7 fish traps around the state allowing biologists to collect, fertilize, and transport eggs while also releasing the captured adult trout back into the wild. Currently, DWR is producing around two million cutthroats annually and stocking them into 300 water bodies around the state. DWR has two goals for the stocking program, conservation and sportfish. If for conservation purposes, the agency typically stocks fingerlings for 3-5 years until natural reproduction is detected. If stocking is done for sportfish purposes, it is typically done in the high country for people to enjoy fishing during a backpacking or horseback trip and those fish are stocked every 3, 4, or 5 years, depending on the waterbody. “The sportfish stocking will continue into the future, but we hope to be done with stocking to restore conservation populations very soon, around 5 years for Bonneville Cutthroat and 10 years for Colorado River Cutthroat,” adds Hedrick.
Support from Sport Fish Restoration Funds
A successful multi-decade restoration effort requires dedication, time, and funding. Throughout nearly every step of Utah’s cutthroat trout conservation effort, Sport Fish Restoration funds have been used. Sport Fish Restoration dollars, paid through a federal excise tax by the manufacturers of fishing tackle and a tax on motorboat fuel, have been vital to supporting fisheries management since the Act’s inception in 1950. Throughout the U.S., many trout have benefited from these federal excise tax dollars including other cutthroat species such as the Rio Grande cutthroat trout in Colorado and New Mexico. “In Utah, we utilize these federal excise tax dollars for a variety of cutthroat specific efforts including staff time used for field work surveying fish and improving habitats, supporting hatchery efforts including purchasing the feed used to raise the juvenile cutthroats, and even a portion of the stocking cost is supported by these funds,” said Hedrick.
Utah’s Cutthroat Trout Slam Challenge
To celebrate the conservation and restoration of Utah’s cutthroat, DWR manages the Utah Cutthroat Slam fishing challenge. The Utah Cutthroat Slam, focused on engaging anglers in native trout fishing, creates an incentive program for anglers to try to catch all of Utah’s native trout. The slam introduces anglers to the state’s cutthroat and offers them a chance to be part of the restoration as proceeds from the slam go to further conservation efforts. “When reviewing submissions for the slam, about a third of the participants add a comment expressing thanks for offering the chance to catch these unique species or sharing that the slam has offered them a way to connect with native trout while also making memories with family or friends,” added Hedrick. To date 1,653 anglers have completed the slam. To find out more about the slam or Utah’s cutthroat trout restoration efforts visit Utahcutthroatslam.org
Recreational Activities
Written By
