Aquatic Conservation Areas

Aquatic conservation areas were developed for each of the 6 basins defined and described in Wyoming's 2017 SWAP. Information on watershed characteristics, description of aquatic wildlife, identification of conservation areas, current conservation initiatives, and recommended conservation actions and future monitoring for each aquatic basin were developed originally by four WGFD biologists: the Fish Management Coordinator, Assistant Fish Management Coordinator, Aquatic Habitat Program Manager and the Assistant Aquatic Habitat Program Manager. Information was gathered by consulting department records and sources as well as other pertinent scientific and government agency sources. The WGFD Strategic Habitat Plan was consulted in some cases for development of conservation areas. In many cases, the priority conservation areas identified in the SWAP had already been identified during the development of the WGFD’s Strategic Habitat Plan (SHP). In the SHP, drainages or portions of drainages that needed to be protected or managed in order to maintain Wyoming’s aquatic SGCN were called “crucial” aquatic habitat areas. Many of these crucial areas were included as priority conservation areas for aquatic wildlife in the SWAP. The priority conservation areas in the SWAP were identified using the best available fish and habitat survey information. These areas generally represent only a fraction of the streams in each basin, but the management of fishes and habitats in these streams is critical to WGFD efforts to conserve Wyoming’s rarest native fishes. Unfortunately, this detailed survey information is still lacking for mollusks, and crustaceans. The list of priority conservation areas will likely be revised as the department gains more information about where these species are found and what habitats they require. For information about the 2017 SWAP, see http://gf.state.wy.us/SWAP2017/Plan/index.asp.