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| Olympic mudminnow |
The Olympic mudminnow is a small fish that only occurs in western Washington. Olympic mudminnow live in marshes and wetlands with a muddy bottom and abundant aquatic vegetation. Typically they do not occur where there are large, predatory fishes, such as largemouth bass. They eat fish larvae, eggs, and small invertebrates, and have a remarkable tolerance of low oxygen levels. The Olympic mudminnow may be an indicator species to monitor the potential impact of climate change on wetlands and fish in western Washington.
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| Western Washington wetland |
The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) conducted mudminnow surveys in past years and created a database of inhabited sites. Our office is currently working with WDFW to revisit several of these sites to see if these fish are still present. Upon capture of a mudminnow, we remove a small part of the caudal fin for genetic analysis to help us determine the relative uniqueness of each Olympic mudminnow population. This is our first year working with this unique species and we plan to collect more data at additional sites in upcoming years.
