The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has announced the final revised recovery plan for the Gila Trout. The species is found in small, high mountain streams in Arizona and New Mexico.
The final plan includes specific criteria for determining when Gila Trout can be removed from the Federal List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and lists site-specific actions that will be necessary to meet those criteria.
The Gila is one of the rarest trout species in the U.S. It was added to the Endangered Species Act in 1973.
Wildlife officials say successful efforts to restore populations have resulted in a down-listing of the fish to threatened in 2006.
Primary threats to the Gila Trout include habitat degradation, and competition and hybridization with exotic fish species, most notably rainbow and brown trout.