Resilience of Splittail in the Sacramento–San Joaquin Estuary

Splittail Pogonichthys macrolepidotus, an endemic cyprinid of the Sacramento–San Joaquin estuary, has been proposed for listing as threatened under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. Almost continuous low outflow conditions in the estuary from 1987 to 1994 led to reduced abundance of young splittails, but adult abundance did not decline consistently except in the downstream portion of the speciesˈ range. This range had decreased primarily as a result of historical levee and dam construction but did not appear to have changed substantially in the past 20 years. The distribution of young splittails appears to be relatively plastic on an interannual basis. Evidence of the resilience of the species was seen when high freshwater outflows in extremely wet years (such as 1982, 1983, 1986, and 1995) resulted in high numbers of young splittails. Splittail year-class strength was positively related to freshwater outflow during the spawning season. High outflow inundates the floodplain, which provides spawning, rearing, and foraging habitat. The relatively long life span, high reproductive capacity, and broad environmental tolerances of splittails are contrasted with delta smelt Hypomesus transpacificus and longfin smelt Spirinchus thaleichthys, other native species of special concern in the system.