Warner Sucker
Encyclopedia
The Warner Sucker is a rare species of ray-finned fish in the Catostomidae
family. It is native to Oregon
in the United States
, where it is found only in the Warner Basin
, its distribution extending just into Nevada
and California
. It is a federally listed threatened species. Its other common name is redhorse.
This sucker
is up to about 40 centimeters in length. It has a dark back and sides and a white belly. The male and some females take on a bright red wash along the sides during the spawning season. The fish spawns in the creeks when they are full in the spring, as well as in canals and on lakeshores. The fish can reach the age of twenty. It becomes sexually mature at three or four.
This fish is native to shallow lakes and associated marsh
es and intermittent lakes and creeks in the Warner Valley
of Lake County, Oregon
. It has been seen in Twelvemile Creek just over the border in Nevada and West Barrel Creek within California state lines. It was historically quite abundant in the valley. There is only one metapopulation
of the fish, made up of several subpopulations. There are two morph
s, one that lives in the lakes and one that stays in stream habitat past spawning time. The lake-dwelling morph is generally larger in size. The stream morph may be the only one that is now experiencing recruitment
.
Threats to the species include many the dam
s which have been installed in the local creeks to divert water for agriculture. These impoundments prevent fish migration and reduce the stream flows. The spawning grounds may be polluted and loaded with excessive silt
. The introduced
crappie (Pomoxis spp.) may be a predator on the juvenile sucker. Drought
is also a current threat. The drought conditions are then made worse with increased irrigation demands on the dwindling water supply.
Conservation efforts include the restoration of riparian
vegetation and the construction of a fishway
at a dam on a major creek. Individuals have been transplanted to Summer Lake Wildlife Management Area when they were threatened by drought conditions; these fish died but not before successfully reproducing in their new habitat. Conservation activities in the area have been shown to benefit the redband trout
(Oncorhynchus mykiss newberrii) as well as the sucker.
Catostomidae
Catostomidae is the sucker family of the order Cypriniformes. There are 80 species in this family of freshwater fishes. Catostomidae are found in North America, east central China, and eastern Siberia...
family. It is native to Oregon
Oregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, where it is found only in the Warner Basin
Warner Lakes
The Warner Lakes are a chain of shallow lakes and marshes in the Warner Valley of eastern Lake County, Oregon, United States. The lakes extend the length of the valley, covering approximately ....
, its distribution extending just into Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
and California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. It is a federally listed threatened species. Its other common name is redhorse.
This sucker
Catostomidae
Catostomidae is the sucker family of the order Cypriniformes. There are 80 species in this family of freshwater fishes. Catostomidae are found in North America, east central China, and eastern Siberia...
is up to about 40 centimeters in length. It has a dark back and sides and a white belly. The male and some females take on a bright red wash along the sides during the spawning season. The fish spawns in the creeks when they are full in the spring, as well as in canals and on lakeshores. The fish can reach the age of twenty. It becomes sexually mature at three or four.
This fish is native to shallow lakes and associated marsh
Marsh
In geography, a marsh, or morass, is a type of wetland that is subject to frequent or continuous flood. Typically the water is shallow and features grasses, rushes, reeds, typhas, sedges, other herbaceous plants, and moss....
es and intermittent lakes and creeks in the Warner Valley
Warner Valley
The Warner Valley is located in south-central Oregon, United States. It is a remote valley at the northwestern corner of North America’s Basin and Range Province. The valley is home to a chain of lakes and wetlands, known as Warner Lakes. The Warner Valley was used by Native Americans for...
of Lake County, Oregon
Lake County, Oregon
Lake County is a county in the high desert south central region of the U.S. state of Oregon, so named for the many lakes found within its boundaries, including Lake Abert, Hart Lake Reservoir, and Goose Lake. While Lake is among Oregon's largest counties, it is sparsely populated with 7,895...
. It has been seen in Twelvemile Creek just over the border in Nevada and West Barrel Creek within California state lines. It was historically quite abundant in the valley. There is only one metapopulation
Metapopulation
A metapopulation consists of a group of spatially separated populations of the same species which interact at some level. The term metapopulation was coined by Richard Levins in 1970 to describe a model of population dynamics of insect pests in agricultural fields, but the idea has been most...
of the fish, made up of several subpopulations. There are two morph
Morph
- Astronomy :* Morphs collaboration, a collaboration that studied the evolution of spiral galaxies using the Magellan and the Hubble Space Telescope- Biology :...
s, one that lives in the lakes and one that stays in stream habitat past spawning time. The lake-dwelling morph is generally larger in size. The stream morph may be the only one that is now experiencing recruitment
Recruitment (biology)
In biology, recruitment occurs when juvenile organisms survive to be added to a population. The term is generally used to refer to a stage whereby the organisms are settled and able to be detected by an observer....
.
Threats to the species include many the dam
Dam
A dam is a barrier that impounds water or underground streams. Dams generally serve the primary purpose of retaining water, while other structures such as floodgates or levees are used to manage or prevent water flow into specific land regions. Hydropower and pumped-storage hydroelectricity are...
s which have been installed in the local creeks to divert water for agriculture. These impoundments prevent fish migration and reduce the stream flows. The spawning grounds may be polluted and loaded with excessive silt
Silt
Silt is granular material of a size somewhere between sand and clay whose mineral origin is quartz and feldspar. Silt may occur as a soil or as suspended sediment in a surface water body...
. The introduced
Introduced species
An introduced species — or neozoon, alien, exotic, non-indigenous, or non-native species, or simply an introduction, is a species living outside its indigenous or native distributional range, and has arrived in an ecosystem or plant community by human activity, either deliberate or accidental...
crappie (Pomoxis spp.) may be a predator on the juvenile sucker. Drought
Drought
A drought is an extended period of months or years when a region notes a deficiency in its water supply. Generally, this occurs when a region receives consistently below average precipitation. It can have a substantial impact on the ecosystem and agriculture of the affected region...
is also a current threat. The drought conditions are then made worse with increased irrigation demands on the dwindling water supply.
Conservation efforts include the restoration of riparian
River
A river is a natural watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, a lake, a sea, or another river. In a few cases, a river simply flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water. Small rivers may also be called by several other names, including...
vegetation and the construction of a fishway
Fish ladder
A fish ladder, also known as a fishway, fish pass or fish steps, is a structure on or around artificial barriers to facilitate diadromous fishes' natural migration. Most fishways enable fish to pass around the barriers by swimming and leaping up a series of relatively low steps into the waters on...
at a dam on a major creek. Individuals have been transplanted to Summer Lake Wildlife Management Area when they were threatened by drought conditions; these fish died but not before successfully reproducing in their new habitat. Conservation activities in the area have been shown to benefit the redband trout
Redband trout
Redband trout is a fish name that may be a synonym for the rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss, but is also used more narrowly for inland subspecies with well-defined geographical distributions in the United States...
(Oncorhynchus mykiss newberrii) as well as the sucker.
External links
- Gimenez Dixon, M. 1996. Catostomus warnerensis. 2011 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Downloaded on 7 October 2011.