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 TitleOregon Chub: the first fish recovered from the Endangered Species Act
Common Name of FishOregon Chub
Scientific Name of FishOregonichthys crameri
Image of FishImage of Fish
Image Caption and CreditJeremy Monroe, Freshwaters Illustrated
Description of Why This Fish Is Important/Interesting

Oregon chub are endemic to the floodplain sloughs, beaver ponds, and slow moving streams of the Willamette River Valley of western Oregon. They were listed Endangered under the Endangered Species Act in 1993. Two main factors contributed to their decline: the construction of flood control dams and development of land for agriculture, which resulted in habitat loss, and the introduction of nonnative fish which predate and compete with the species. To recover the species, the Oregon Chub Working Group maintained and restored habitat, reintroduced the species into new locations, and augmented flow regimes. Roughly two-thirds of chub populations occur on privately owned property, and building relationships with communities and landowners was one of the key factors in recovery. In 2015, the Oregon Chub became the first fish removed from the Endangered Species Act due to recovery. A video about Oregon Chub on private lands can be found here: https://vimeo.com/27875004

Website or Journal Article for More Informationhttps://www.fws.gov/oregonfwo/articles.cfm?id=149489414
Your NameBrian Bangs