GREEN RIVER – Coordinated efforts by Wyoming Game and Fish Department, Seedskadee Chapter of Trout Unlimited personnel from Seedskadee National Wildlife Refuge and volunteers have rescued numerous fish from dewatered wetlands on the Seedskadee National Wildlife Refuge. Approximately 40 volunteers assisted with this year’s fish salvage operation.
Seedskadee National Wildlife Refuge, located some 30 miles northwest of Green River, draws water in from the main stem of the Green River to fill the managed wetlands on the Refuge. These wetlands are managed for numerous species of waterbirds, including trumpeter swans and other waterfowl. Ditches on the Refuge are dewatered in the winter for management purposes, which results in en-training or trapping fish, which was the impetus of the salvage operation.
The fish were captured using backpack electrofishing equipment and netted into buckets. Volunteers then transported the fish to an aerated tank where they were identified and counted. The coordinated project resulted in 519 fish, representing six species, to be released back to the Green River where their chances of surviving winter greatly increase. The majority of these species were Brown Trout (324; 62 percent) and rainbow trout (147; 28 percent).
“While the Green River is most commonly known for having a trophy trout fishery, it is limited by the amount of available habitat for juvenile fish,” said Green River Fisheries Biologist John Walrath. “Juvenile fish typically use side channel habitat to escape predation, but, the habitat is limited due to regulated flows from Fontenelle Dam. As a result, fish seeking refuge can often times become en-trained in ditch networks where they are more susceptible to predation and winterkill.”
Last year, armed with data from two years of electrofishing, refuge personnel along with Seedskadee Trout Unlimited and the Game and Fish began fundraising for a fish screen. The fish screen, which is slated to be installed this November, will allow the Refuge to pull their full water right needed to fill their wetlands from the river, while keeping fish out of the ditch.
“The screen will be solar powered and self cleaning, which will reduce the amount of debris we have in our ditch” said Tom Koerner, Seedskadee Refuge Project Leader.
“With the amount of fish that we are seeing in the ditch, a screen is a great investment for all the partners to improve the Green River fishery,” said Nick Walrath, Green River project manager for Trout Unlimited.
“This screen is a big win for people that use this great resource,” said Seedsakdee Trout Unlimited chapter member Calvin Hazlewood.
Seedsakddee Trout Unlimited partnered with the Wyoming Wildlife, Natural Resource Trust Fund, Seedskadee Refuge and the Game and Fish and private funders to make the fish screen a reality.
