29: Colorado Pikeminnow

I write to you from Arapahoe, Ute, and Cheyenne land. I am interested in learning about the different animals that live in the place where I was born. I want to mention that biological classification as taught by western science has its roots in racism, sexism, and transphobia – here’s a good explainer about why.

After writing about the Black-capped Chickadee yesterday, I saw one today in the Bear Creek Greenbelt. The bird was about shoulder high, foraging in some willows. I also saw a pretty impressive beaver complex in the same area, many mallards, two water rats, dozens of black-tailed prairie dogs, and, of course, rabbits. My dog saw all these animals as well, but had very different feelings about them than I did, especially the rabbits and prairie dogs.

Today’s animal is a great example of why I started writing these – I knew absolutely nothing about it until about 30 minutes ago and now I am utterly fascinated. The Colorado Pikeminnow (Ptychocheilus Lucius) evolved around 3 million years ago and has been listed as endangered since 1967. These species once lived throughout the Colorado River basin and surrounding areas, spanning Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada, and California, but due to construction of large dams, especially along the Colorado, is now restricted to just Utah and Colorado. They are migratory, traveling up to 200 miles to spawn. They like to spawn in whitewater canyons, I guess because they love the thrill. Fascinatingly, scientists believe that they seek out river canyons that get freshwater from groundwater seeping through sandstone or limestone.

This is the largest carp fish in North America, and at one time was the top predator of the Colorado River. They have been observed eating other fish, mice, and even small birds! Sadly they are much smaller than they were historically, again because of habitat depletion. While learning about them, I came upon this fascinating oral history of the fish, composed from over 100 interviews with senior citizens in Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming. Everything on that page is worth reading, but I particularly enjoyed this:

Tim Merchant of Green River, Wyo., said his grandfather caught Colorado pikeminnow using chicken parts to bait multiple hooks on a clothesline. His grandfather tied the line to the bumper of his truck and waited.

"When (the line) went tight, they'd just back the truck up and drag those fish out on the bank," Merchant said. "They were as big as a junior high school kid, 90 pounds. That's a big fish."

Anglers told of Colorado pikeminnow that were up to 5 feet long and 80 or more pounds; most recalled Colorado pikeminnow in the range of 20 to 40 pounds. Many of the seniors said they used Colorado pikeminnow for food, especially during the Depression.

Of course the first people in Colorado also prized these fish. From the same article:

…bones thought to be from Colorado pikeminnow were found in archaeological sites on the Gila River in southern Arizona. Scientists estimated the relics were from around 500 B.C. to 1400 A.D. Presumably, the bones were from fish consumed by the Hohokam civilization.

Other scientists have reported finding Colorado pikeminnow bones from around 1300 to 1400 A.D. on a Pueblo Indian site in Arizona at the headwaters of the Verde River, a tributary to the Salt and Gila rivers.

Reading about these amazing fish brought low now, after 3 million years of river dominance, I am reminded of Edward Abbey’s The Monkey Wrench Gang and how we should probably get rid of those dams…