Update: Feb 25, 2022.

FWS - The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service would like to inform everyone that based on a review of the best available scientific information, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is listing the peppered chub as endangered under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The peppered chub is at risk of extinction due to significant declines of its freshwater stream habitat. The Service also is designating 872 river miles in New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas as critical habitat that will be essential to the conservation of the species.

Critical habitat for the peppered chub includes areas that are particularly important for the conservation of the species. The designation requires federal agencies to consult with the Service if they are conducting, funding or permitting activities that may adversely affect the chub’s recovery or its habitat. Designation of critical habitat does not affect land ownership, nor does it establish a refuge or preserve, and it has no impact on private landowners taking actions on their land that do not require federal funding or permits. 

Though the Service initially proposed an additional 197 river miles of critical habitat in Kansas, during the public comment period we received a request to exclude this critical habitat because of an ongoing effort to include the species in a Candidate Conservation Agreement with Assurances (CCAA) and a Safe Harbor Agreement (SHA). The Programmatic Safe Harbor Agreement and Candidate Conservation Agreement with Assurances (for fourteen Aquatic Species in Kansas) was completed on Dec. 15, 2021, and the critical habitat in Kansas has been excluded from the final rule.

The final rule to list peppered chub as endangered and designate critical habitat (FWS-R2-ES-2019-0019) will publish in the Federal Register on Monday, February 28, 2022.

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From December 2020:

FWS - The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service recently completed a Species Status Assessment for the peppered chub. Based on a review of the best available scientific information, the Service is proposing to protect the peppered chub as an endangered species under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) due to its significant decline. The Service is also proposing to designate 1,068 river miles in Kansas, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas as critical habitat that will be essential to the conservation of the species.

“To recover peppered chub, we need to address the essential physical and biological features the species needs to increase its populations, such as adequate streamflow throughout its life cycle,” said Amy Lueders, Service Regional Director. “But more than just this fish species stands to gain from improving water flow and water quality conditions that the peppered chub requires to thrive. People and communities will benefit from a more robust fishery with improved recreational opportunities, cleaner drinking water with lower treatment costs and a more resilient ecosystem.”

The peppered chub is a freshwater fish that grows up to three inches long and lives approximately two years. Today, the peppered chub is found in only about six percent of its historical range. The chub requires unobstructed river segments greater than 127 river miles and flowing water with adequate depths to support all of its life stages. River fragmentation and alterations of the natural flow regime, largely due to water diversions and impoundments, and degradation of water quality within its range are the primary stressors affecting the species.

Proposed critical habitat for the peppered chub includes areas that are particularly important for the conservation of the species. The proposed designation requires federal agencies to consult with the Service if they are conducting, funding or permitting activities that may adversely affect the chub’s recovery or its habitat. Designation of critical habitat does not affect land ownership nor does it establish a refuge or preserve, and it has no impact on private landowners taking actions on their land that do not require federal funding or permits.

To conserve the peppered chub, the Service is coordinating with partners including the Canadian River Municipal Water Authority on continued efforts to control invasive, nonnative vegetation and to maintain adequate flows within the chub’s range. Working with the state of Kansas, Service biologists are exploring the idea of captive propagation and fish passage restoration for the chub that could contribute to the species’ recovery.

To learn more about the peppered chub, visit this page on our legal foundation website, and scroll down to the section on Peppered Chub.