Page 62 - Flathead Beacon // 7.9.14

62 | JULY 9, 2014
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Defending One of the
LAST STRONGHOLDS
by DILLON TABISH
A westslope cutthroat trout caught in Margaret Lake after hybrid trout were removed from the lake and pure
westslope cutthroat were restocked. COURTESY MONTANA FISH, WILDLIFE AND PARKS
The South Fork Flathead River is home to the strongest population of westslope cutthroat trout in
Montana, if not the entire West. State biologists are do- ing everything they can to protect the species, even if it
means eradicating hundreds of other nonnative fish
Koessler Lake is a backcountry reser- voir of crystalline water fed from the wild South Fork Flathead River, hid-
den in the mountains amid the towering Swan Range north of Seeley Lake.
Its remote, isolated setting inside the west- ern boundaries of the Bob Marshall Wilderness
makes it ideal for secluded fish populations.
In other words, it’s a perfect place to protect a world-class, genetically pure species.
As part of an ambitious 10-year conser- vation project aimed at protecting the South Fork’s revered westslope cutthroat trout fish- ery, state biologists are targeting Koessler Lake as the next site to undergo a rare population restoration.
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