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San Juan Anglers To See An Old Friend
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Fly fishermen take note, the San Juan River in northwestern New Mexico has gotten an infusion of more than 3,000 endangered roundtail chubs, according to officials with New Mexico Game and Fish Department. That means you might once again have to start tying a new pattern to get a big one on the upper San Juan.
No, this is not a new species to these waters. Roundtail chub were once found throughout the Colorado River basin, including the San Juan River and its tributaries in New Mexico, Colorado and Utah. The species was listed as threatened under the New Mexico Wildlife Conservation Act in 1975 and their status was changed to endangered in 1996.
The chubs that were released were raised at the Colorado Division of Wildlife Native Species Hatchery. They were stocked in the San Juan near the confluence with the Animas River, high in the system with the hope that they will disperse downstream into suitable habitat. Given time, chubs typically run eight to 18 inches and weigh up to 3 pounds. They are known as a gamefish because they are hard fighters and are typically willing to hit lures, flies and bait. To learn about this fish, check out www.azgfd.gov/h_f/fish_roundtail_chub.shtml.
For more information on roundtail chubs and the cooperative efforts between New Mexico Fish and Game and the Colorado Division of Wildlife, click on www.wildlife.state.nm.us/conservation/documents/ChubsRecoveryPlan.pdf.
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