Introduction 



Five species of sculpin (genus Cottus ) occur in Montana (Brown 

 1971, Holton 1990) . Sculpin are bottom dwelling fish typically 

 found in rocky substrates of cold water streams. They 

 characteristically have large flattened heads and fan-like 

 pectoral fins. The presence of palatine teeth as well as the 

 number of spiny-rays and soft-rays on the pectoral and pelvic 

 fins are used to distinguish some species. However, sculpin do 

 vary in color and structure, making field identification 

 difficult. Also, occasionally the taxonomy of some species may 

 be in doubt because of the similarity between species due to 

 morphological variation or hybridization (Wydowski and Whitney, 

 1979) . Sculpin are difficult to sample with conventional methods 

 typically used to monitor game fish species in the state. As a 

 result, the distribution and habitat use of each species within 

 the state is uncertain. 



Two sculpin species ( Cottus confusus and Cottus ricei) are listed 

 as Species of Special Concern in Montana (Center, 1992) . The 

 U.S. Forest Service Northern Region lists these same two sculpin 

 species as Sensitive Species. As such, these two species receive 

 special consideration for conservation lands administered by the 

 forest service. 



This field effort of seven weeks and the results is a 

 continuation of six weeks of field work in 1991 to identify the 

 geographic distribution of Cottus in northwest Montana. This 

 study also sought to further define Cottus habitat use in 

 relation to varying degrees of land use and resultant watershed 

 condition. Objectives and methodologies are essentially the same 

 as in 1991 (Gangemi 1992). 



In the Kootenai National Forest samples were taken from 

 tributaries of Koocanusa reservoir, the Clark Fork, Kootenai, and 

 Tobacco river systems. Tributaries of the Stillwater River in 

 the Flathead National Forest were also surveyed. This work 

 commenced in July and continued through September of 1992. A 

 number of basins within these watersheds were sampled intensively 

 to determine longitudinal distribution of species in a watershed. 



Sculpin are classified as a non-game fish by the Montana 

 Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks. Funding for research on 

 non-game species is minimal and most distributional information 

 to date has been collected incidentally while electroshocking for 

 game fishes. As a result, the distribution and abundance of 

 sculpin species has not been well documented. The primary 

 purpose of this study is to determine the geographic distribution 

 and relative abundance of sculpin species within the Kootenai 

 National Forest and adjacent portions of the Flathead National 

 Forest. 



