150 Fishes to Celebrate 150 Years

This list is still in progress and being added to weekly. Check back again soon!

150 Fishes to Celebrate 150 Years

In 2020, the American Fisheries Society will celebrate its 150th Anniversary. As part of the celebration, the Society will be calling attention to 150 fishes. We solicited nominations of fishes for the list by the Society’s membership.

The 150 Fishes list is a celebration of the biodiversity of freshwater and marine fishes of North America. These fishes will help tell the story of fish and fisheries of the continent. They may illustrate unique life histories, beauty, conservation issues, and challenges of managing and conserving these animals and their habitats.  These fishes represent our native biodiversity, but also illustrates how invasives and our own human nature have had impacts on our aquatic resources. Hence, this list will primarily focus on native species but may include non-natives when they tell a compelling fisheries story. From the stories of these fishes, the Society and the public can learn to better appreciate these amazing natural resources and be challenged to ensure that future generations will be able to experience these fishes in their native settings.

Nomination Process

Fish nominations are now closed.

Circulation Process

The 150 Fishes list will reside at the 150th Anniversary Website, information about individual fish from the list will be circulated through various social media platforms throughout the year.

This list is meant to be a fun for members and informative for the public. It is unlikely we will be able to include all nominations. We acknowledge that every fish has a story. There may be opportunities to discuss all the nominated fishes in the future.


FULL LIST OF NOMINATED FISH

Catchy TitleA River of Red to Cure Hunger
Common Name of FishBonneville Cutthroat Trout
Scientific Name of FishOncorhyncus clarkii utah
Image of FishImage of Fish
Image Caption and CreditBonneville Cutthroat Trout © Steve Stoner - Boulder Mountain Fly Fishing
Description of Why This Fish Is Important/Interesting

For the Goshute tribe of the Deep Creek Mountains of the Utah-Nevada border, the Bonneville Cutthroat Trout was an essential source of food described as the ‘red fish’. The Bonneville cutthroat ranges from yellow-green to silver and has large round spots scattered on its body. Some of the surviving strains still show a crimson slash mark. However, while this species prevented starvation among pioneers, development soon destroyed the population and the species was thought to be extinct. Rediscovered in 1974 the Bonneville Cutthroat Trout has been brought back from the brink of extinction. In 1978 there were only six populations of this species in Utah. Now there are around 200 populations within the state where it has found its title as state fish.

Website or Journal Article for More Informationhttp://www.utahcutthroatslam.org/bonneville-cutthroat-trout/
Your NameNatasha Lofgreen