ATLANTA— The Center for Biological Diversity today petitioned the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to protect a rare freshwater fish called the stippled studfish under the Endangered Species Act.

Stippled studfish once lived throughout the Tallapoosa River system across Alabama and Georgia. Due to development, pollution and drought in the region, they now live in only a few streams in Alabama, in very low numbers, and have not been seen in Georgia since 1990.

“Stippled studfish are sparkling, freckly fish with exceptional breeding behaviors who urgently need protection from people and from our changing climate,” said Meg Townsend, a freshwater species attorney at the Center. “Studfish have already disappeared from streams in Georgia and without Endangered Species Act protection, the few remaining populations in Alabama could be lost forever, too.”

To successfully reproduce, stippled studfish need cold, clear water with clean sand and gravel to lay their eggs and perform their unique spawning ritual. Spawning fish dive into the sand and deposit eggs that incubate there for several days until hatching. But cold, clear water and clean sand are increasingly hard to find in the fish’s native range, where the intact forests that used to surround their home rivers have been replaced by urban sprawl, poultry and livestock farms, and clearcut logging. Growth projections for the area indicate these trends are on track to worsen, not improve.

Much of the studfish’s home in the Tallapoosa watershed has been fragmented by dams and reservoirs, preventing the fish’s few remaining populations from traveling to mate. Also, a fracked gas pipeline called the Sabal Trail Pipeline became operational in 2017 and crosses Hillabee Creek, one of the rivers where stippled studfish still remain. When fracked gas pipelines that cross rivers and streams leak or spill, it can be devastating for the wildlife who live there as well as surrounding communities.

Much of the southeastern United States has already been facing increased drought over the past several decades, and the Tallapoosa and Coosa river watersheds recently received the attention of Congress for a drought-induced water conflict between Alabama, Florida and Georgia. Climate models predict these drought events will only become more frequent and intense. Increased stream temperatures resulting from climate change will further harm the studfish, who do not breed when water temperature exceeds 80 degrees Fahrenheit.

“If we lose this irreplaceable little fish, we lose a bit more of what makes the Southeast’s rivers so special,” said Townsend. “Endangered Species Act protection will give the studfish the greatest chance at survival and allow federal funding to protect the places they live.”