Western Native Trout Initiative

Proposed Accomplishment Summary
Susie Creek, north of Carlin, Nevada, has been identified as priority recovery habitat for LCT, a threatened species, by the LCT recovery plan and the Humboldt DPS Team. Ongoing efforts to restore public and private lands has resulted in roughly 22-miles of the watershed being restored. Before LCT may be reintroduced into Susie Creek a fish barrier needs to be constructed. The potential of adverse impacts from nonnative fishes present in the Humboldt River exists if access is not blocked.

The importance to the Resource
Recovery of LCT in the Humboldt DPS depends on reintroducing LCT into restored interconnected habitats without nonnative fishes present. This project represents an opportunity to reintroduce LCT into 22 miles of newly restored interconnected stream habitat.

The problem
Nonnative fishes have been shown to negatively impact stream-dwelling LCT through competition, hybridization, and predation. For this LCT reintroduction to be successful, access to this watershed by nonnative fishes in the mainstem river must be prevented.

The method
A barrier will be constructed at the confluence of Susie Creek and the mainstem Humboldt River consisting of both vertical and velocity barriers to upstream fish movement.