Species Guide: Snake River Cutthroat
The Snake River fine-spotted cutthroat is what scientists call an unnamed subspecies. To anglers, it's obviously a very unique, geographically isolated race of cutthroat trout. You find these fish only in the upper reaches of the Snake River, and their profuse, but very small spots, make them visually distinct from any other species.Snake River cutthroats have the smallest spots of any North American trout species.Taxonomists, however, need more to go on than a visual identification, and have found that these trout cannot be distinguished from Onchorhynchus clarki bouvieri (Yellowstone cutthroat trout), either by meristic character analysis, or by protein electrophoresis. In other words, if you count the gill rakers, the number of average scales, the number of rays in the fins, or put tissue under the microscope, it seems to be the same fish and as a result, it doesn't get its own unique Latin name.The two subspecies even share the same geographic identities, with the native range of fine-spotted cutthroat trout lying completely within that of the Yellowstone cutthroat trout. Snake River cutthroat trout are found in the cold, clear upper reaches of the the Snake River near Jackson, Wyoming, and downstream into Idaho.The Snake River downstream of Pallisades Reservoir is an artificially productive tailwater fishery with incredible hatches, large trout, and huge numbers of trout per mile. Right now, this may be the best place in the world to catch a native fine-spotted cutthroat, but the fishery is a mixed blessing. Brown and rainbow trout have been in the river for many years, and while the brown trout population is a small, stable part of the ecosystem, rainbows make up a greater percentage of the population every year. They are literally taking over the river, by out- competing the native trout, and cross- breeding them out of existence.While many anglers prefer to catch rainbow trout because of their greater size and fighting ability, it's obvious this unique race of cutthroat trout needs to be protected through its native range. If Snake River cutthroat trout were to disappear from the Snake River, it would be an ecological tradgedy. The Idaho Department of Fish and Game is taking steps to protect the cutthroat trout, culling rainbow trout through electroshocking, and encouraging greater angler harvest of rainbow trout where the two species co- exist.Ironically, while measures are being considered to protect fine- spotted cutthroat trout in their native environs, in other parts of the country, it's the fine-spots that are the "exotic" species. In fact, it seems that when cutthroats are stocked in any water, fine-spotted cutthroat trout are the preferred subspecies. It probably has something to do with their ability to survive the hatchery, and grow quickly to catchable sizes while sustaining a high angler catch rate, but I prefer to think that the reason they are looked upon so favorably is that they are a great looking fish.
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