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"The McKenzie watershed has over a thousand miles of
perennial streams, of which most are fish bearing. Of the hundreds of
natural lakes of varying sizes in the watershed, about 130 contain fish, as do
each of the six reservoirs located in the watershed. There are 22 species
of native fish in the McKenzie watershed and somewhere between seven and twelve
introduced species. Most of the 22 native fish species found in the
McKenzie River are found downstream from Leaburg Dam.
Several species of trout are found in the McKenzie watershed. Rainbow,
cutthroat, and bull trout are native. Small populations of brook trout
were also introduced into several high elevation lakes prior to 1960.
Self-sustaining populations of brook trout occur down to Trail Bridge
Reservoir. The most common fish in the McKenzie River is the cutthroat
trout but the rainbow trout is the fish that has given the McKenzie River its
reputation for fine angling.
Bull trout (commonly called Dolly
Varden) are the native char in the McKenzie
River and are the only char native to the state of Oregon. The bull trout
(the aquatic equivalent of the wolf) is a top predator in the river. Oregon is at the southern edge of the bull trout range and the McKenzie bull
trout are the only population of note remaining west of the Oregon
Cascades. They are a cold water fish leftover from the ice age and are a
very small population generally found in the upper stretches of the McKenzie
River above Leaburg Dam, and in Horse Creek and the South Fork McKenzie River,
above and below Cougar Reservoir.
The McKenzie watershed also supports a number of other species.
Mountain whitefish are native and found throughout the McKenzie River and its
largest tributaries. Other native species include the Oregon chub,
lampreys, minnows, sculpins, threespine stickleback, and white sturgeon.
The Oregon chub is thought to be found generally in the lower McKenzie watershed
and is listed as a threatened species by the United States Fish and Wildlife
Service. Non-native warm-water fish found in the McKenzie watershed
include largemouth bass, bluegill, and crappie.
The McKenzie River is one of the heaviest stocked rivers in Oregon.
Rainbow trout are the fish of choice for Oregon Department of Fish and
Wildlife's (ODFW) stocking program in the McKenzie River (ODFW, 1988).
Stocking the main stem and South Fork of the McKenzie River and Blue River with
145,000 legal size rainbow trout paid for by the (Army Corps of Engineers) ACOE
occurs annually. The ACOE funds this stocking effort to compensate for
lost habitat due to the dams built in the Willamette River system. The
ODFW also stocks Trail Bridge, Carmen Smith, and Leaburg reservoirs with an
annual average of 110,000 fish, bring the total annual stocking in the watershed
to about 250,000 fish. These fish are reared at the Leaburg Trout
Hatchery."
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