Aquatic biologists study Greenback Cutthroat demographics in Bear Creek
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) -- Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) conducted electrofishing in Bear Creek near the intersection with Gold Camp Road to learn the number and species of the creek’s fish population.
CPW says three of their aquatic technicians used buckets and nets to complete two upstream collections focusing on 100 yards of the riverbed.
According to wildlife officials, "electrofishing sends a small charge to a metal ring on a pole that’s moved under water. The ring discharges a low-amp electrical charge to temporarily stun nearby fish, allowing them to be netted for the count."
CPW says they use this technique to learn the overall health of the creek and its fish population.
“The health of the cutthroat trout population is a good indicator of the overall health of Bear Creek,” said Cory Noble, CPW Aquatic Biologist.
All fish were released back into the creek after the assessment, which CPW says had not been done before this since 1996.
CPW has not released at this time what the findings were of the assessment, but they confirm that Bear Creek has clean water.
“Bear Creek has very clean water, but faces an ongoing road sediment challenge,” said Noble. “The sediment fills pools that the fish need for habitat, and that creates a shallow creek with less habitat complexity.”
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