Tribe releases endangered Owens Pupfish to local waters
Bishop Paiute Tribe and partners have established a new endangered Owens pupfish sanctuary on Bishop Paiute Indian Reservation
On April 21, in an event coordinated with the Bishop Paiute Tribe’s Annual Earth Day Event, the Bishop Paiute Tribal Council along with Tribal Staff, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) released endangered Owens pupfish into the newly established Owens Pupfish Refuge within the Tribe’s Conservation Open Space Area.
Due to a variety of reasons, the fish has become extremely rare and is now listed under both the federal Endangered Species Act and California Endangered Species Act. “Establishing the Owens pupfish on tribal lands is a real reason to celebrate,” said Meryl Picard, Tribal Chairwomanin a recent news release. “The fish have played such an important part of our cultural history. We are so happy that we have finally arrived at this point where we have worked through the logistical and legal hurdles involved and found the means to contribute to the protection and recovery of the fish both on and potentially off-reservation”.
Once widespread up and down the Owens Valley in the network of ponds and sloughs that make up the Owens River watershed, the Owens pupfish was once a staple food item for the local Paiute, who caught fish by the hundreds and dried them for storage and later eating. Implementation of this project is an important milestone in a 15-year journey for the Bishop Paiute Tribe, taking a proactive approach to the conservation of a local protected species.
Another milestone on this journey was the passing of California Assembly Bill
Owens pupfish, male. Location: Fish Slough near Bishop. 2001, Owens Pupfish Protection Act, a bill sponsored by California State Assembly member Devon Mathis of the 33rd District in 2016. Under the California Fish and Wildlife Code 5515, Owens pupfish are a fully protected species, meaning that without the passage of this bill, the Tribe would not have been able to complete