Tui Chub (Siphateles bicolor) are Native to the Columbia River Basin in Washington State

Abstract

Although many modern authorities hold that Tui chub (Siphateles bicolor) are native to the Columbia River basin, they are uncommon in most of the basin today, and others have called their native status into question. Here we provide evidence that the species is indigenous to lakes and streams in the Columbia River basin of Washington State, based on multiple lines of testimony. Evidence includes: 1) no record of introductions by federal or state fish and wildlife management agencies; 2) over 100 museum specimens collected from 1881 to 1930; 3) records of abundance in the tens of thousands in area lakes prior to modern management efforts in the 1940s; and 4) 62 diagnostic bones recovered from four archaeological sites dating before 1850.