Text Size

Fisheries Activities

The native fish augmentation program goal is to conserve the population of the once flourishing native fish community and contribute to the recovery of the razorback sucker and bonytail. In order to accomplish this, the LCR MSCP will, over the life of the program, provide the effort necessary to raise and stock approximately 660,000 razorback suckers and 620,000 bonytail of at least 300mm in length in the reach of the river between Davis Dam and Parker Dam (reach 3), and at least 305 mm in length between Parker and Imperial Dam (reaches 4 and 5). The fish augmentation program is guided by a native fish augmentation plan.

The program currently uses two razorback sucker brood stocks. The first is the Lake Mohave population of razorback sucker. The Lake Mohave population is recognized as the most genetically diverse stock of the species. To help protect and enhance this genotypic variability, the LCR MSCP captures wild-born razorback sucker larvae from Lake Mohave, rears them in hatcheries, and returns them to Lake Mohave (reach 2) when they reach adult size. The second razorback sucker brood stock is maintained by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) at the Southwestern Native Aquatic Resources and Recovery Center (formerly the Dexter National Fish Hatchery and Technology Center) located in Dexter, New Mexico. The LCR MSCP also provides significant funding for the only brood stock of bonytail in the world, also located and maintained at the Southwestern Native Aquatic Resources and Recovery Center.

The following table gives the number of razorback suckers and bonytail stocked into the lower Colorado River.

Updated December 19, 2019