Protecting the
Clear Lake Hitch
for Future Generations
The Clear Lake Hitch is a culturally significant minnow found nowhere else on Earth. We monitor, protect, and advocate for this remarkable fish — and the lake ecosystem it calls home.
Clear Lake Hitch
Lavinia exilicauda chi
Endemic · Up to 350mm · Lives ~6 years
Clear Lake Hitch — Spawner Count by Year
California's Rarest Minnow
The Clear Lake hitch (Lavinia exilicauda chi) is a subspecies of minnow found only in Clear Lake, Lake County, California — the largest natural freshwater lake entirely within California, and one of the oldest lakes in North America at nearly 500,000 years old. It is one of the most ecologically and culturally significant fish in the state — and it's disappearing.
Each spring, adult hitch migrate from the lake into its tributaries to spawn — a spectacle that has sustained the Indigenous Pomo Tribes as a food and cultural resource since time immemorial. The Pomo people know this fish as chi. Tribal communities have long held deep spiritual and practical connections to this fish and the watershed that sustains it.
Today, the Clear Lake hitch faces mounting threats: prolonged drought, loss of spawning habitat, harmful algal blooms, competition and predation from invasive species, and reduced water flows in tributaries. In February 2023, Lake County declared a local state of emergency due to the risk of extinction. As of January 2025, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service has proposed listing the hitch as threatened under the Federal Endangered Species Act.
Biology
Lives up to 6 years · Grows to ~350mm · Spawns each spring in lake tributaries · Feeds almost primarily on Daphnia (water fleas), supplemented by algae, zooplankton, and insects.
Cultural Significance
A vital subsistence resource for Pomo Tribes since time immemorial. Spring spawning runs were historically massive events tied to ceremony, community, and food security.
CA Endangered Species Act — Listed Threatened (2014)
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife has protected the CLH as threatened since 2014, restricting take and mandating conservation efforts.
Federal ESA Listing Proposed — January 2025
The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service has proposed listing the CLH as threatened under federal law — a critical step toward broader habitat and population protection.
Lake County Watershed Protection District
Conducts annual spawner surveys, community science programs, and collaborates with Tribes, state and federal agencies on habitat restoration and population research.
Live Conditions & Spawner Map
Real-time lake level, dam discharge, cyanobacteria monitoring, and spawning season status — alongside the interactive tributary survey map.
Lakeport pier
EPA Monitoring
Interactive Tributary Map
Click any creek, lake zone, or tab to explore spawner survey data, population trends, and habitat conditions.
Fishes of Clear Lake
All 36 documented fish species of Clear Lake — native, introduced, and those lost — plus 4 failed introductions. Click any card for detailed information.
Unsuccessful Introductions
These species were released into Clear Lake but failed to establish self-sustaining populations — illustrating that Clear Lake's unique warm, shallow, and eutrophic conditions are not suitable for all introduced fish species.
Threats & Conservation
Clear Lake faces a convergence of environmental pressures — and an equally broad coalition working to reverse them.
Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs)
Clear Lake experiences severe annual cyanobacterial blooms that produce toxins dangerous to fish, wildlife, pets, and humans. Blooms reduce oxygen, block sunlight, and devastate aquatic food webs — directly impacting juvenile hitch survival.
Invasive Species
Non-native species like common carp, goldfish, largemouth bass, and others compete with and predate on native fish. Carp and goldfish disturb sediments, uproot vegetation, and consume hitch eggs — contributing directly to recruitment failure each spawning season.
Drought & Habitat Loss
Persistent drought has reduced tributary flows, leaving hitch stranded or preventing migration entirely. Riparian vegetation loss, channel degradation, and agricultural diversions further reduce viable spawning habitat year over year.
Water Quality & Warming
Rising temperatures, elevated nutrient loads from agricultural runoff, and legacy contamination from historic mercury mining combine to stress fish populations and accelerate harmful algal bloom frequency and severity throughout the year.
Watershed Development
Land use changes increase runoff, sedimentation, and nutrient input. Road crossings and diversions in tributary streams act as physical barriers to hitch spawning migration.
What We're Doing
- Annual visual spawner surveys — CDFW, Robinson Rancheria, Habematolel Pomo of Upper Lake, Big Valley Rancheria, LCWPD, and community scientists
- Hitch tagging study — Habematolel Pomo of Upper Lake monitors migration patterns
- Carp & goldfish removal — CDFW, Robinson Rancheria and Rojas Fisheries
- CDFW in-lake mark-recapture survey
- USGS gillnet surveys — abundance and distribution since 2017
- Hitch Rescue Team — responds to stranded hitch reports
Help Protect the Hitch
Whether you're a scientist, angler, student, or just a curious resident — there's a way for you to contribute to Clear Lake Hitch conservation.
Become a Community Scientist
Report Clear Lake hitch sightings during the spring spawning season (March–May). Your observations directly support the long-term population record.
Volunteer hereGet a Free Hitch Sticker
Pick up your free Clear Lake hitch sticker at the Lake County Water Resources front office in Lakeport. Spread awareness in your community.
255 N. Forbes St., Room 309Report Stranded Hitch
If you spot hitch stranded in a dry or disconnected tributary, call immediately — the Hitch Rescue Team responds and relocates fish to safe water. Quick action saves lives.
Call (707) 263-2344Permits are required to conduct fish rescues. Always contact the Rescue Team rather than attempting relocation yourself.Support Lake Rehabilitation
Multiple organizations are working to restore Clear Lake's health — from large-scale habitat projects to community shoreline stewardship.
Blue Ribbon Committee (AB 707)