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 Fish per Minute 5 0 1973 1993 2010 YEAR CPUE 30 25 20 1973 15 1993 2010 10 Fish per 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 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 Numberof Fish 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 .