distributed gamefish in the Mount Haggin streams is the rainbow trout. Deep 

 and Tenmile Creeks received annual plants of hatchery rainbow trout between 

 1958 and 1956 and the Big Hole River is currently stocked on an annual basis 

 near the mouths of Deep and Seymour Creeks (MDFWP Stocking Records). Records 

 also show that rainbow trout were planted in Seymour and Willow Creeks during 

 the 1940's and 1950's. 



Cutthroat trout were collected from Sixmile and Willow Creeks. Cutthroat 

 trout were probably native to all of the Mount Haggin streams. Numerous plants 

 of hatchery cutthroat trout were made in Deep, Seymour and Willow creeks 

 between 1928 and 1954 (MDFWP Stocking Records). These cutthroat are listed 

 as being of undesignated strain meaning that their parental origin was from a 

 mixture of cutthroat varieties. Specimens collected from Willow Creek were 

 examined to determine if they were of the west slope cutthroat strain. The 

 fish were found to be of the Yellowstone strain and have some west slope 

 characteristics (Jim Roscoe, unpublished data). The present Willow Creek 

 cutthroat trout population is probably a result of past plantings and may have 

 replaced a native west slope population. 



Small numbers of cutthroat trout in Sixmile Creek and low numbers of 

 rainbow X cutthroat trout hybrids indicate that cutthroat trout still occupy 

 the Deep Creek drainage. A previous electrof ishing survey of the Mount 

 Haggin streams found cutthroat trout in Tenmile Creek in a section located 

 upstream from that surveyed in 1980 (MDFWP unpublished data). 



Burbot and whitefish were generally found in the larger streams including 

 Deep, French and California Creeks. Both species are native to the Big Hole 

 River drainage and common throughout the major tributaries (Brown, 1971). 

 Non-game species collected included longnose sucker, longnose dace and mottled 

 sculpin. Sculpins were common to all of the streams and provide a valuable 

 forage species for the trout and burbot. Like the burbot and whitefish, 

 longnose dace and longnose suckers were most common in the larger streams 

 studied. 



Although no arctic grayling were captured during the study, this species 

 has historically occupied Mount Haggin streams. Deep and Seymour Creeks enter 

 the Big Hole River within the distributional limits of the present fluvial 

 grayling population. Liknes (1981) reported collecting grayling in LaMarche 

 Creek, a tributary stream entering the Big Hole River about three miles from 

 the mouth of Seymour Creek. Arctic grayling have been collected from Deep 

 Creek (Wipperman 1965 and 1967) and have been reported in fisherman catches 

 as recently as the early 1970's (Lew Myers, personal communication). The 

 origin of the Deep Creek grayling may have been native Big Hole River fish or 

 progeny from a 1937 plant of nearly 752,000 grayling fry in the stream 

 (MDFWP Stocking Records). The absence of grayling in the electrofishinq 

 survey may indicate that the species no longer occupies the Deep Creek drainage 

 due to unfavorable conditions as discussed by Liknes (1981) or may be related 

 to the selection of the study sections. It is possible that extensive 

 electrof ishing survey work could reveal grayling populations in other sections 

 of streams in the Deep Creek or Seymour Creek drainages. 



23 - 



