Native Fish

Native fish play an important role in Lake Roosevelt’s waters. By being part of a healthy food web, they help their underwater community thrive. Native species are often threatened by human impacts and invasive species—the native fish in Lake Roosevelt are no different. When the Grand Coulee Dam was constructed, the Columbia River transformed into Lake Roosevelt. This significantly altered the native fish habitat from a flowing river to a steady lake. Many migratory species that relied on access to the ocean were reduced or eliminated. Those that remain in Lake Roosevelt have overcome many challenges and have found a way to survive in their altered home.

Primary Native Fish at Lake Roosevelt

 

White sturgeon

Rick Swart/ODFW

White Sturgeon

Acipenser transmontanus

• North America's biggest freshwater fish; Average weight 100-300 lbs, but can grow up to 1,800 lbs

• Landlocked behind Grand Coulee Dam

• Coloring can range from gray to brownish on the dorsal side, paler on the ventral side, and gray fins

• Has rows of bony external plate called or "scutes" along the body

• Opportunistic feeders; When small they feed on clams, mussels, crayfish, worms, and fish eggs; At larger sizes, they prey on fish such as smelt, anchovies, lamprey, shad and salmon

 

Sockeye/Kokanee salmon

NPS photo

Sockeye/Kokanee Salmon

Oncorhynchus nerka 

• Landlocked, non-migrating version of sockeye salmon

• Blue backs and silver sides, fine scales, large eyes, and deeply forked tail; spawning males develop a bright to olive green coloring on the heads and a red coloring over their bodies with black on the snout and upper jaw; spawning females exhibit a less brilliant coloration than males

• Average length of 9-12 inches, though they can grow up to 20 inches; Average weight 1.3 lbs

• Tributary streams provide important spawning grounds

 

Rainbow trout

USFWS

Rainbow Trout

Oncorhynchus mykiss

• The most common species of trout in Washington

• Steelhead and rainbow trout are the same species, but rainbow are freshwater only while steelhead migrate out to sea

• Bluish-green back, silver sides and belly, and black spots on the body and on the caudal, dorsal, and adipose fins; frequent presence of a reddish stripe along its sides

• Average 11-18 inches in length, but can grow to more than 20 inches in quality populations, average weight 1-3 lbs

• The Columbia Basin redband trout subspecies of rainbow trout occurs in the Columbia River drainage from the Klickitat River upstream: it can handle more variation in pH levels and higher water temperatures than its coastal relatives, making it less vulnerable to climate change but still vunerable due to competition with non-native fish

 

Chinook salmon

USFWS

Chinook Salmon

Oncorhynchus tshawytscha

• Small dark spots on the head, back, and caudal fin, streamlined, and laterally compressed body

• Non-spawning fish are dark green to blue-black on their heads and back and silvery to white on the sides and belly; during spawning, changes to an olive-brown, red, or purplish color

• Average adults are 3 feet in length, weighing 10-15 lbs, but can grow up to 135 lbs

• Prefer to spawn in large rivers or streams, such as the Columbia and Snake rivers

• Chinook in Lake Roosevelt wash down from Coeur d’Alene Lake

 

Burbot

USFWS Lucas Beaver

Burbot

Lota lota

• Identified as a Species of Greatest Conservation Need (SGCN) under the State Wildlife Action Plan (SWAP)

• Elongated body mottled greenish or brown in color, with a single barbel on the chin, a flattened head and single, tube-like projection for each nostril

• Lives in large, cold rivers, lakes, and reservoirs, typically a bottom-dweller

• Widely varied diet of invertebrates and vertebrates, including zooplankton, amphipods, insects, frogs, lamprey, whitefish, grayling, young northern pike, suckers, stickleback, trout, and perch

 

Mountain Whitefish

NPS Photo

Mountain Whitefish

Prosopium williamsoni

• Feeds mainly on benthic organisms such as aquatic insect larvae, mollusks, fishes, and fish eggs (including their own)

• Overall coloration is silvery with light or dark brown or olive on back, becoming silvery in sides and white below; scales on back, may have pigmented borders; dorsal fin often dusky, pelvic and pectoral fins in adults with amber tint

• Averages 9 inches in length, but can grow up to 27 inches with a maximum weight of 6 lbs

• Feeds on or near the bottom of lakes by stirring up sediments to expose insect larvae and other invertebrates, including snails, crayfish, and amphipods

 

Signal Crayfish

Photo credit GBNNSS ©Trevor Renals

Signal Crayfish

Pacifastacus leniusculus

While technically not fish, signal crayfish (a crustacean) are listed as a fish according to Washington state regulations, which are adopted by Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area.

• Freshwater crayfish that inhabits streams, ponds and lakes in a variety of habitats, including rocky, muddy, and vegetated area

• Typically 2–3.5 inches long, although lengths of 6–7 inches are possible

• Bluish-brown to reddish-brown in color, with large, smooth claws

• Feeds on aquatic plants, freshwater invertebrates, and carrion

• Preyed on by fishes, turtles, snakes, raccoons, otters, birds