Athabasca rainbow trout

Athabasca rainbow trout
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Chordata
Class:
Actinopterygii
Order:
Salmoniformes
Family:
Salmonidae
Genus:
Oncorhynchus
Species:
Oncorhynchus mykiss

The Athabasca rainbow trout is a population of rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss), a fish in the family Salmonidae.

Taxonomy

The Athabasca rainbow trout was considered as a form of the Columbia River redband trout (O. mykiss gairdneri) subspecies in the trout handbook of Robert J. Behnke (1992), but considered a separate, yet unnamed subspecies by L. M. Carl of the Ontario Ministry of Resources in work published in 1994.[1]

They are not considered a distinct subspecies from other rainbow trout.[2]

Habitat

The Athabasca rainbow trout is primarily found in the cold headwaters of the Athabasca drainage in Alberta, Canada.[1][2] The Athabasca rainbow trout is one of the few native rainbow trout populations found in an Arctic Ocean watershed.[3] The Athabasca River is a tributary of the Mackenzie River system which flows north into the Arctic Ocean.[3]

In the winter they will use the largest and deepest pools in any occupied stream as an overwintering spot.[2]

Reproduction

The Athabasca rainbow trout spawn in the springtime in streams with fine gravels that are free of silts in clays, and that also have moderate flow rates.[2] They spawn later in the spring than other rainbow trout.[2]

Conservation status

The Athabasca rainbow trout used to be considered a "May be at risk" species[4] in Alberta due to potential habitat loss and hybridization with introduced rainbow trout".[1] As of August 2019 it is designated under the Species At Risk Act (SARA) as Endangered.[2] Their main threats are invasive species and the increased competition they bring, introgression with non-native rainbow trout introduced as game fish, fishing pressures, habitat loss and fragmentation, sedimentation, climate change, and water pollution.[2]

References

  1. ^ a b c Rasmussen, Joseph B.; Taylor, Eric B. (2009). "Status of the Athabasca Rainbow Trout Oncorhynchus mykiss in Alberta" (PDF). Government of Alberta-Fish and Wildlife Division. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-02-21. Retrieved 2013-11-29.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g "Recovery Strategy for the Rainbow Trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) in Canada (Athabasca River populations) - Canada.ca". 2023-04-14. Archived from the original on April 14, 2023. Retrieved 2024-06-20.
  3. ^ a b Behnke, Robert J. (2002). "Redband Trout of the Columbia River Basin". Trout and Salmon of North America. Tomelleri, Joseph R. (illustrator). The Free Press. pp. 81–86. ISBN 0743222202.
  4. ^ Rasmussen, Joseph B.; Taylor, Eric B. (2009). "Status of the Athabasca Rainbow Trout Oncoryhnchus mykiss in Alberta" (PDF). Government of Alberta-Fish and Wildlife Division. pp. 26–27. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-02-21. Retrieved 2013-11-29. "May be at risk: Any species that may be at risk of extinction or extirpation, and is therefore a candidate for a detailed risk assessment