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Colleen Caldwell

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The dataset represents benthic aquatic macoinvertebrates collected from eight streams to characterize production in Rio Grande cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii virginalis; RGCT) populations throughout northern New Mexico from 2016 through to 2017. The macroinvertebrates were sampled using Hess samplers with a 250 micron mesh and all taxa were identified to the lowest level of taxonomic resolution.
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The impacts of climate change on cold water species will likely manifest in populations at the trailing edge of their distribution. Rio Grande cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii virginalis, RGCT) occupy arid southwestern U.S.A. streams at the southern-most edge of all cutthroat trout distributions; thus making RGCT particularly vulnerable to the anticipated warming and drying in this region. We collected stream temperature and stream drying to determine how these environmental constraints influence life-history trait expression (length- and age-at-maturity), demography, and extirpation risk in RGCT populations from northern New Mexico, U.S.A. We found the rate at which RGCT reached maturity was highest at warm...
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Susceptibility of Rio Grande Cutthroat Trout to Displacement by Non-Native Brown Trout and Implications for Future Management
The Rio Grande cutthroat trout is New Mexico’s state fish; but habitat loss and non-native trout invasions threaten the persistence of this fish throughout the remaining 12% of its historic range. Stakeholders, including state agencies, federal agencies, Tribal nations, Pueblos, and private groups are particularly concerned about the impact that non-native brown trout have on native cutthroat trout. This project will be the first to demonstrate how non-native brown trout negatively affect Rio Grande cutthroat trout populations. The project has two primary objectives: 1) compare the health and characteristics of native Rio Grande Cutthroat Trout in areas both with and without invasive brown trout in cold and warm...
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The impacts of climate change on cold water species will likely manifest in populations at the trailing edge of their distribution. Rio Grande cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii virginalis, RGCT) occupy arid southwestern U.S.A. streams at the southern-most edge of all cutthroat trout distributions; thus making RGCT particularly vulnerable to the anticipated warming and drying in this region. However, RGCT may possess a portfolio of life-history traits that aide in their persistence, attributes commonly observed in trailing edge populations. We used otolith and multistate capture-mark-recapture data collected along a temperature and stream drying gradient to determine how these environmental constraints influence...
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The Effects of Drought on Rio Grande Cutthroat Trout: The Role of Stream Flow and Temperature
Increasing temperatures and decreasing precipitation threaten the persistence of the Rio Grande cutthroat trout, the southernmost subspecies of cutthroat trout, found only in parts of New Mexico and Colorado. This subspecies appears to be more vulnerable to drought than more northern subspecies, because it occupies small and fragmented streams which are at greater risk of drying up during drought. Most notably, in 2002 drought in the Southwest resulted in the loss of 14 different Rio Grande cutthroat trout populations – about 10% of the total population. While it is known that drought is having an effect on Rio Grande cutthroat trout, the specific ways in which individuals and populations are affected by drought...
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