Endangered Species

Any time we plan to add to our water system, we ensure we are in compliance with Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act of 1973. Under this protective act, we must consult with the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service before taking any action that might affect a federally listed, threatened or endangered species.

Razorback Sucker

The razorback sucker (Xyrauchen texanus) is a native fish unique to the Colorado River Basin. In the early 1900s, this razorback sucker was abundant in the Colorado River and its major tributaries, but after non-native species were introduced and dams were constructed in the basin, its number decreased rapidly. Today the razorback sucker exists mostly in small populations scattered across the Colorado River Basin, the largest of which consists of approximately 25,000 fish in Lake Mojave.

In an effort to protect the razorback sucker from extinction, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service listed this species as endangered in 1991 and designated critical habitat for it in 1994, a portion of which is at Lake Mead. In addition, the Lower Colorado River Multi-Species Conservation Program was initiated in 1993 by the states of Arizona, California, Nevada and federal agencies in a cooperative effort to aid in the recovery of the razorback sucker.

Southwestern Willow Flycatcher

The federally-endangered southwestern willow flycatcher (Empidonax traillii extimus) is a neotropical migrant which depends upon riparian forests in the southwest to raise its young. Because the flycatcher's habitat is tied to riparian or riverine corridors, the Water Authority is interested in how water resource management relates to this endangered species.

Along with the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, SNWA funds the San Bernardino County Museum surveys for the flycatcher along the lower Virgin and Muddy Rivers and Lake Mead. Goals of these surveys include locating breeding pairs, gathering demographic information and characterizing occupied habitat. Data collected also will help various local, state and federal agencies characterize the overall health of this species so that sound resource management decisions can be made. SNWA also has conducted annual flycatcher surveys in the Las Vegas Wash since 1999.