YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK — A creek in Yellowstone National Park (YNP) will be closed next week for treatment to remove an invasive fish species.
The closure of Buffalo Creek, a tributary of Slough Creek in the northern part of the park, will support ongoing conservation efforts to preserve native species. Buffalo Creek will be closed to the public from Monday, Aug. 31 through Sunday, Sept. 6. It will reopen on Sept. 7. The treatment will take place from the northern park boundary downstream to the creek’s confluence with Slough Creek. Non-native rainbow trout will be lethally removed by applying rotenone, a chemical approved by the Environmental Protection Agency for fish management.
“Buffalo Creek is the source of invasive rainbow trout that have been competing and hybridizing with native Yellowstone cutthroat trout in Slough Creek, Soda Butte Creek and the Lamar River,” YNP wrote in a Tuesday news release. “Removal of the rainbow trout source population in Buffalo Creek is key to ensuring the long-term persistence of Yellowstone cutthroat trout in the Lamar River watershed.”
YNP stated that the treatment will not affect the potability of water in Slough Creek Campground, and signs will be posted to notify visitors of the closure. YNP will move any Yellowstone cutthroat trout that are captured through electrofishing before the project begins, though they are rarely found in Buffalo Creek.
Yellowstone cutthroat trout are the only native trout species in the park. According to YNP, they are the most ecologically important fish of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. They are also highly regarded by anglers. Throughout the Intermountain West, genetically pure Yellowstone cutthroat trout populations have been declining due to competition, predation, hybridization and habitat degradation.
