First records of Stonecat (Noturus flavus) in the Qu’Appelle River watershed, Saskatchewan

Authors

  • Kate S. Prestie Troutreach Saskatchewan
  • Gregory Frie School of Environment and Sustainability, University of Saskatchewan
  • Leeah Earl Troutreach Saskatchewan
  • Iain D. Phillips Water Security Agency https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0955-3771

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.22621/cfn.v138i4.3429

Keywords:

Stonecat, catfish, Qu'Appelle River, Saskatchewan, Noturus flavus

Abstract

Stonecat (Noturus flavus) is a unique catfish species with a restricted distribution in western Canada; it is limited to a few rivers in the prairie provinces. In Saskatchewan, its presence has previously been recorded only from the Frenchman River watershed of the Upper Missouri basin. Here we present new records from the Qu’Appelle River in the Hudson Bay basin,
~150 river km upstream from its nearest known distribution at the confluence with the Assiniboine River.

Author Biographies

Kate S. Prestie, Troutreach Saskatchewan

Masters of Science, and current member of the Troutreach Saskatchewan Committee in the Saskatchewan Wildlife Federation

Gregory Frie, School of Environment and Sustainability, University of Saskatchewan

BSc, current Master's student with a focus on freshwater mussels in southern Saskatchewan

Leeah Earl, Troutreach Saskatchewan

Intern with Troutreach Saskatchewan Committee at the Saskatchewan Wildlife Federation

Iain D. Phillips, Water Security Agency

Senior Aquatic Macroinvertebrate Ecologist with the Water Security Agency, Adjunct Professor with the University of Sasaktchewan, and Chair of the Troutreach Committee with the Saskatchewan Wildlife Federation.

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Published

2025-10-22

Issue

Vol. 138 No. 4 (2024)

Section

Notes

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