Trout habitat likely will be slashed in half due to climate change by the year 2080, according to a study published Monday, with native cutthroat trout expected to see the most severe decline.
Researcher Seth Wenger, the paper’s lead author, said cutthroat could see a 58 percent decline in suitable habitat due to warming rivers, altered streamflows and competition from nonnative species.
The study, published in the science journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, also predicts a decline in introduced brook trout populations by as much as 77 percent, while rainbow and brown trout populations could also decline by an estimated 35 percent and 48 percent, respectively.
LINK (via: The Billings Gazette)
This on top of a 2008 study by the NRDC and Montana Trout Unlimited that determined trout habitat in the Rocky Mountain region could be reduced by 50 percent or more due to the effects of global warming.
Meanwhile in North Idaho.
Warmer water temperatures being recorded in North Idaho streams and rivers are creating unhealthy conditions for trout, especially the region's westslope cutthroats, Idaho environmental officials said.
The DEQ is proposing a plan to reverse the warmng trend, unfortunatley some view it as an example of government waste or a “liberal” reaction to climate change.
LINK (via: The Spokesman Review)