Rio Grande Cutthroat Trout

The New Mexico State Fish, Rio Grande Cutthroat Trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii virginalis) are native to the Rio Grande and Pecos River drainages of Colorado and New Mexico. They are also believed to be native to the Canadian River drainage of Colorado and New Mexico, but no early historic specimens or written accounts are available to verify this. The historic range of Rio Grande Cutthroat Trout has been reduced over the last 150 years due to many landscape changes, including drought, water infrastructure, habitat changes, hybridization with rainbow trout and other species of cutthroat trout, and competition from brown trout and brook trout. As a result of these changes, Rio Grande Cutthroat Trout populations are restricted primarily to headwater streams. They have a yellowish green-gray to gray body with scattered black spots, and a densely spotted tail. Adults grow up to 12-13 inches long.

A conservation team established in 2003, composed of Colorado Parks and Wildlife, New Mexico Dept. of Game and Fish, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, the National Park Service, the Jicarilla-Apache Nation, the Mescalero-Apache Nation, and the Taos Pueblo tribe and conservation organizations such as the Western Native Trout Initiative and Trout Unlimited has collaborated to work on range-wide protection plans and completed numerous conservation projects for the species. An updated conservation agreement and 10-year plan to protect the Rio Grande Cutthroat Trout was signed in 2013 with the goal of assuring the long-term viability of Rio Grande Cutthroat Trout throughout its historic range and setting a conservation strategy for the near future.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) received a petition in 1998 to list the Rio Grande Cutthroat Trout under the Endangered Species Act. In a 90-day finding, the agency concluded that listing was not warranted. However, in 2001 a candidate status review was initiated in response to litigation appealing this decision and new information, particularly regarding the presence of whirling disease within the native range of the sub- species (USFWS 2002). The results of this review were published in 2002, and it was again determined that listing of this taxon was not warranted (USFWS 2002). In 2005, a petition for Review of Agency Action regarding the ‘not warranted’ decision was denied. That decision was appealed to the 10th Circuit Court. After briefs were filed, USFWS settled the case and agreed to conduct a new status review. In 2014, USFWS determined that that listing under the Endangered Species Act was not warranted. On December 9, 2024, USFWS again determined that listing under the Endangered Species was not warranted, acknowledging decades of critical partnerships that have ensured the species is not in danger of extinction or likely to become in danger of extinction in the foreseeable future.

Between 2007 and 2021, the Western Native Trout Initiative has provided $692,945 in funding to 24 projects to benefit Rio Grande Cutthroat Trout. Projects have ranged from barrier construction/restoration to keep non-native trout out of conservation waters, habitat restoration, genetics analysis, and public outreach and education.