Conservation and management of the Quitobaquito pupfish, Cyprinodon eremus, in Sonora and Arizona

Authors: Douglas K. Duncan, Tim Tibbitts

Year: 2008 (xl)

Abstract

The Quitobaquito pupfish (Cyprinodon eremus), an endangered species, is extremely rare and threatened. Formerly considered a subspecies of the endangered desert pupfish, it occurs at only two sites in the wild; a half-acre pond at Quitobaquito Springs on Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument in Arizona, and just across the border in a one kilometer-long reach of the Río Sonoyta, in northern Sonora. The risk of extinction for the Quitobaquito pupfish is very high because of its limited distribution. Excessive groundwater pumping in a dry year combined with predation from nonnative fish species could easily eliminate the Río Sonoyta populations of Quitobaquito pupfish and longfin dace. Drying and possible contamination of Quitobaquito Springs threaten the Quitobaquito population of pupfish. In 2004 and 2005, refuge ponds were established at the visitor’s centers for Cabeza Prieta National Wildlife Refuge and Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument and were stocked with pupfish from Quitobaquito. In spring and summer 2007, two refuge ponds were established and stocked with Quitobaquito pupfish and longfin dace from the Río Sonoyta. One is located at the Pinacate y Gran Desierto de Altar Biosphere Reserve headquarters and one at the Intercultural Center for the Study of Deserts and Oceans in Puerto Peñasco. Additionally, in summer 2007, we collected pupfish and dace from portions of the Río Sonoyta that were drying due to drought conditions and released them in the spring system at the Quitovac Indigenous Community. We built another pond in 2008, in the town of Sonoyta, at the high school. These ponds not only help us meet recovery tasks identified in the desert pupfish recovery plan, but will also be used as tools to educate the public about the importance of conserving our rare desert resources (educational panels will be displayed adjacent to the ponds). In 2006 through 2008, Quitobaquito Pond experienced acute reductions in water. Causes are suspected to include long-term drought and leaks in the retaining berm caused by tree roots. Monument staff increased routine maintenance, renovated the northeast spring, reinforced the retaining berm, and hauled supplemental water to the pond. Over 2000 pupfish have been temporarily evacuated, to monument headquarters, Cabeza Prieta, and the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. This project has been a joint effort of multiple partners, including: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Pinacate and Gran Desierto de Altar Biosphere Reserve, Commission of Ecology and Sustainable Development of Sonora, CEDO, Quitovac Indigenous Community, University of Arizona, University of Arizona Cooperative Extension, Arizona Game and Fish Department, Caldwell Design, Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, Cabeza Prieta National Wildlife Refuge, International Sonoran Desert Alliance, the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, and students from the Oregon State University Fish and Wildlife Club and Ajo Middle School.