The following is a press release issued by the Center for Biological Diversity:
In response to a 2012 petition by the Center for Biological Diversity, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service today proposed to protect the Clear Lake hitch — a large minnow found only in Northern California’s Clear Lake and its tributaries — as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act. Clear Lake hitch numbers have declined precipitously as their habitat has been degraded and destroyed.
“I’m relieved that strong protections are on the way for these iconic fish who embody the hope for a restored Clear Lake, and whose persistence is so meaningful for indigenous cultures,” said Jeff Miller, a senior conservation advocate at the Center. “The hitch need immediate emergency actions if they’re going to survive. Endangered Species Act protections can help ensure that happens.”
Clear Lake hitch migrate each spring, when adults make their way into the streams that connect to Clear Lake to spawn before returning to the lake. Millions of hitch once crowded into the lake’s tributaries during spectacular spawning runs. These masses of hitch were a vital part of the Clear Lake ecosystem and an important food source for numerous birds, other fish and wildlife. Hitch were also a staple food and a cultural mainstay for the original Pomo inhabitants of the region. Now just a few thousand adult fish spawn in a good year, with numbers dipping much lower in recent years…