“We haven’t seen something like this in Montana”, agency spokeswoman Andrea Jones said.
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The wildlife agency will monitor the river and lift the closure when stream conditions such as flow and temperature improve and fish mortality ceases. All waters within Yellowstone National Park remain open to fishing. It has been documented in Montana two other times in the past 20 years.
No similar closure based on a disease outbreak has ever occurred in Montana, even when whirling disease was causing significant fish die-offs across the state in the 1990s.
FWP said in the press release that it is also starting to receive reports of dead rainbow and Yellowstone Cutthroat trout.
Officials said the closure is necessary to protect the fishery and the economy it sustains. The ban applies to tributaries spanning from the national park’s Gardiner northern boundary all the way through to Highway 212’s bridge in Laurel. Biologists said the closure may help slow the spread of the disease.
“In the Park we have a little bit different situation, we’re at a higher elevation, and the risk for us having that particular parasite is lower”, Reid said. “It’s definitely a big part of the Livingston and area economy”. The parasite is not a danger to humans. “However, we must act to protect this public resource for present and future generations”, said Hagener.
Yellowstone Raft Co. owner Robin Trotter said she had started calling hundreds of customers with reservations in coming weeks to let them know their trips could be canceled.
Fish, Wildlife and Parks Director Jeff Hagener acknowledged that the move would have a significant effect on those who use the Yellowstone. The officials explained that recreational activities are stressing the fish and amplify the effects of the parasite on their health.
The parasite is not native to the area, meaning it was introduced by people via a contaminated boat, fishing waders or other means – or possibly by birds that transported it from another waterway, officials said.
A dead whitefish floats belly up near the Mayors Landing Fishing Access in the Yellowstone River in Livingston, Mont. on Sunday, Aug. 14, 2016.
Testing has shown the cause of death to be Proliferative Kidney Disease, which can affect both whitefish and trout in particularly devastating ways.
In addition to the closure on the Yellowstone, FWP is asking for the public’s assistance in preventing the spread of this parasite by properly cleaning (CLEAN.DRAIN.DRY) all equipment prior to moving between waterbodies (i.e., boats, waders, trailers). FWP has also set up two Aquatic Invasive Species decontamination stations set up along I-90 near the affected area in an effort to help reduce the chance of this parasite moving to other rivers.
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The closed river section runs from the northern boundary of Yellowstone National Park, at Gardiner, and continues east and south almost to Billings, the state’s largest city.
