The 2-inch fish once thrived in the creeks of the hill country around Del Rio, ranging from the Devils River near Juno to Las Moras Creek in Brackettville and into northern Mexico. Currently biologists have found the minnow in only three locations in Texas -- one in San Felipe Creek in Del Rio and two in small creeks feeding the Devils River. In Mexico, the fish is known to exist in only one location in the Rio Salado Drainage in Coahuila.
The minnow is threatened by declines in water quality and quantity, and by non-native fish introduced into its habitat, including smallmouth bass which prey on the minnow.
Habitat destruction caused by the construction of the Amistad Reservoir eliminated the fish from the lower Devils River. The species was extirpated from Las Moras Creek when the springs feeding the creek were modified to construct and maintain a swimming pool.
The Devils River minnow, which is already recognized by the State of Texas as a threatened species, was proposed for listing as an endangered species in March 1998.
After consideration of the public comments and the signing of a Conservation Agreement with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (with cooperation of local landowners) and the City of Del Rio in September 1998, the Service decided to list the fish as threatened rather than endangered. The agreement provides for the State and city to undertake conservation actions including protection of the San Felipe Creek watershed, technical assistance to landowners on the conservation of riparian riparian
Definition of riparian habitat or riparian areas.
Learn more about riparian areas, review of live bait harvest and selling practices in the Devils River area to prevent further establishment of exotic, aquatic animals, and additional population and habitat monitoring.
"This agreement is a result of our close work with the State of Texas and other partners," said Nancy Kaufman, the Services regional director for the Southwest Region. "It provides a blueprint for joint efforts to restore this species.
Concern over the minnow began in 1978, when the Service initially proposed that the fish be listed as threatened. The proposal was withdrawn in 1980 due to a lack of information. The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department has since monitored the status of the fish, documenting substantial declines. Surveys in 1997 and 1998 confirmed the existence of the minnow in only three localities.
This decision to list the Devils River minnow as threatened follows a one-year review period of the proposal to list it as endangered that was published in the Federal Register on March 27, 1998. The public comment period was opened for 120 days and was reopened in October for an additional 30 days. The Service also held a public hearing in Del Rio on the proposal in May 1998.
The Service published its decision to list the species as threatened in todays Federal Register.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal Federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting, and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 93-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System comprised of more than 500 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands, and other special management areas. It also operates 66 national fish hatcheries, 64 fish and wildlife management assistance offices and 78 ecological services field stations. The agency enforces Federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Aid program that distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies.
