Yellowstone Completes Native Fish Conservation Plan

Yellowstone National Park has completed a plan to guide the management of fisheries and aquatic resources in the park for the next two decades.

The Native Fish Conservation Plan/Environmental Assessment was released for public review last December. Changes made in response to comments were incorporated into a Finding of No Significant Impact, which was recently signed and is now available online at http://parkplanning.nps.gov/yell.

Restoration of Yellowstone cutthroat trout in Yellowstone Lake is the highest native fish conservation priority for the park. The conservation plan calls for heightened netting of non-native lake trout by both National Park Service fisheries staff and by contractors for the next several years.

The conservation plan also calls for removal of non-native fish from some streams and lakes in the park, and the restoration of native Yellowstone cutthroat trout, westslope cutthroat trout, and Arctic grayling.

This plan does not propose any changes to fisheries management in the Madison or Firehole rivers.

The fishing season opens this Saturday, May 28, on many of Yellowstone's waters. Fishing regulations and information on Yellowstone National Park fishing permits is available at many locations inside and outside the park, and online at http://www.nps.gov/yell/planyourvisit/fishing.htm.

Anglers are cautioned that most of the rivers and streams in the park are experiencing extremely high flows, creating dangerous conditions in some areas. Prior to fishing, anglers are advised to plan accordingly and should check the latest river flow information at http://volcanoes.usgs.gov/yvo/hydro_data.html.