Steelhead trout, once thriving in Southern California, are declared endangered

PhysOrg —

Southern California’s rivers and creeks once teemed with large, silvery fish that arrived from the ocean and swam upstream to spawn. But today, these fish are seldom seen.

Southern California steelhead trout have been pushed to the brink of extinction as their river habitats have been altered by development and fragmented by barriers and dams.

Their numbers have been declining for decades, and last week California’s Fish and Game Commission voted to list Southern California steelhead trout as endangered.

Conservation advocates said they hope the designation will accelerate efforts to save the fish and the aquatic ecosystems on which they depend.

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