Glenwood, NM, December 20, 2018— On December 1, the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish, in partnership with the Gila National Forest, released approximately 800 Gila trout into Whitewater Creek.

Members of the public got to visit with Smokey Bear, participate in information about wildlife, release some fish and learn more about this native species. In New Mexico, the heart of Gila trout habitat is the Gila and Aldo Leopold Wilderness areas. In 2012, the nearly 300,000 acre Whitewater Baldy Fire burned nearly half of the existing Gila trout streams and fish were eliminated from six of the eight streams that were within the burned area. Since then conservation efforts have consisted of returning Gila Trout to the streams affected by the wildfire, continuing to establish them in new streams, and developing opportunities to fish for this rare trout.

Gila trout conservation is guided by the Gila Trout Recovery Plan, and the Gila Trout Recovery Team, which is comprised of professions from New Mexico Department of Game and Fish, USDA Forest Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services, the University of New Mexico, and the Arizona Game and Fish Department. For more information on Gila trout and the recovery efforts visit here.