April 2010 - Parks & Recreation - 21

other species of prey and difficult for fisherman to catch. The
last time I fished in the wilderness areas of Yellowstone Lake was
2003. It took three of us 90 minutes to catch one cutthroat. The
symphony of nature that I enjoyed for 40 years was gone. The
nest of eagles and ospreys around the lake-gone. What was
left was what I refer to as a biological desert.
So what does this have to do with the parks and recreation
field?
First, as natural resources managers of our parks and public lands, we are not effectively communicating with public
users. We need to devise more ways to emphasize that only
professionally trained experts in the fields of biological and
social sciences should decide which species are compatible
and incompatible with each environment. In the case of Yellowstone Lake, " bucket biologists " decided to do the world a favor
by introducing the lake trout into Yellowstone Lake so people
could catch larger fish. They caught lake trout in nearby Lewis lake, put the trout in a bucket, drove a few miles north, and
dumped the lake trout into Yellowstone Lake-unaware of the
consequences. The cutthroats are gone, as are the 42 species
that depend on cutthroat as part of their diets.
Second, interpretation programs about the management of
our natural resources would help people understand how delicate and precious they are to the park.
Next, require the acquisition of permits to use delicate areas.
The permits and accompanying literature or visual productions
can explain the regulations governing the use of the area.
Parks and recreation curriculums in colleges and university should have courses in " interpretation " programs. What
happened at Yellowstone Lake is like the unsinkable Titanic.
Stories about the Titanic are still in the movies, documentaries,
magazines, and investigations on why it sank. The demise of
Yellowstone Lake cutthroat trout should be used an example in
classroom discussions about how to protect and preserve our
natural resources.
As soon as the National Park Service verified in 1994 that
lake trout were in Yellowstone Lake, an effort to deal with them
was initiated. Several symposiums of fisheries biologists discussed various approaches. To date, the initiatives include
mapping the topographical bottom of Yellowstone Lake, using
the maps to identify spawning areas of lake trout, using commercial gill netting in the spawning areas, and using electro
fishing. At the close of last year, more than 400,000 lake trout
have been killed since the gill netting began in 1994.
The profound impact the cutthroat trout have had on my life
and professional career and the significance they have to Yellowstone and our country can be found in my book released
last June (WordsWorth Publishing). Profits from the sale of the
book go to the Yellowstone Center for Resources. www.wordsworthpublishing.com.
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APRIL 2010

Parks & Recreation

April 2010 - Parks & Recreation

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