An Introduction to Olympic Mudminnow

Molly Hallock – Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife Roger Tabor – U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Phylum: Chordata Class: Actinopterygii Order: Esociformes Family: Umbridae Genus: Novumbra Species: N. hubbsi

Washington’s Olympic mudminnow

Family Umbridae - Mudminnows • Closely related to the pike family (Esocidae) • Five species in Umbridae, all freshwater – Alaskan blackfish, central mudminnow, eastern mudminnow, and European mudminnow • Small fish – maximum 33 cm (Alaskan blackfish) • Elongate bodies with dorsal and anal fins set far back – soft rays only • Lateral line faint or absent

Identification • Dorsal and anal rays set far back and about equal in size • Dorsal fin directly over anal fin • Caudal fin is truncated • Vertical bars on sides (faint in females) Olympic mudminnow distribution Olympic Mudminnow Habitat

Several cm of soft mud Aquatic vegetation Little/no water flow Tell me about this fish… • Small, 20-90 mm • Relatively poor swimmers • Only thrive with a few other fish species • Age and growth??

Reproduction • March – June (peak in April and May) • Sexes strongly dimorhpic in color Female • Males have relatively large territories (1.1 by

0.4 m) – aggressive Male • Courtship involves a “wigwag” dance • Adhesive eggs deposited in vegetation – no parental care

Other species 0.6

0.5

0.4

0.3

0.2

CPUE (fish / second)CPUE / (fish 0.1

0 0 2 4 6 8 Number of Species

Reticulate Three-spine Western Brook Sculpin Stickleback Coho Salmon Lamprey Speckled Dace Population Trend Data

• Electrofishing at selected sites • 1973 – UW (Harris 1974) • 1993-97 – WDFW • 2010 – WDFW, USFWS

Mean Fish/Minute CPUE T=Max, Min CPUE 30 8 sites

25

20

15

10 Fish per per Fish Minute 5

0 1973 1993 2010 YEAR CPUE 30

25

20

1973 15 1993 2010

10 Fish per per Fish minute 5

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Sites CPUE 1993-1997 Mean Fish/Min T =Max, Min CPUE

120

100

80

60

40 FISH PER MINUTE PER FISH

20

0 2 5 25 26 33 34 77 85 86 94 108 SITE NUMBER Other Sampling Technique Minnow Traps • Baited with frozen bloodworms • Overnight sets • Several can be set each night • Standard unit of effort 35 30

25

20

15

10

5 Number of Fish / Trap (2 SE) (2 Trap / Fish of Number 0 James Pond Green Cove N = 7 N = 2 State Sensitive Species

State Sensitive – a native species that is vulnerable or declining and is likely become endangered or threatened in a significant portion of its range within the state without cooperative management or removal of threats.

Listing Justification – Limited range And threats from habitat loss. Olympic mudminnow Threats

Habitat Loss… Introduced Fish Or Alteration Green Cove Drainage Olympia ,WA What happened at Green Cove?

Habitat Alteration Next Steps

Genetic Analysis Status Review