Once Thought Extinct, This Trout Now Reproduces Without Human Intervention

The greenback cutthroat trout, the emblematic fish of Colorado, the United States, is now reproducing on its own after being considered completely extinct almost a century ago.

“This is just another affirmation that our conservation practices work and that we can save species on the brink,” states Kevin Rogers, an aquatics researcher for Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW). 

In the 1930s, federal officials listed the greenback cutthroat trout as extinct, but in 2012, researchers found the only natural and purebred population in a 5.6-kilometer run of Bear Creek. Each spring, CPW aquatic biologists would catch the endangered marine species to collect milt, roe, sperm, and eggs. In 2016, individuals have been transferred to Herman Gulch and today, this population of adult trouts is reproducing without help from humans.