The westslope cutthroat is one of the four major subspecies of cutthroat and is native to a very large area of western North America, including parts of Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Oregon, Washington and Canada. Westslope cutthroat were first brought to the attention of the scientific community when Captain Meriwether Lewis of the Lewis and Clark expedition described trout caught by a member of the expedition near the Great Falls of the Missouri River in Montana on June 13th 1805. Westslope cutthroat in the lower 48 states have been displaced throughout much of their native range and today many populations are restricted to small headwater streams. Due to the dramatic decline of westslope cutthroat populations this fish was proposed to be listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) in 1997. Although this petition for the subspecies to be listed was declined, many populations remain at risk of extinction. The introduction of non-native species has perhaps been the single greatest factor leading to the decline of the westslope cutthroat. This is why I choose to depict this particular fish. Swim cutthroat swim!