The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has accepted a petition to change the classification of the Gila topminnow under the Endangered Species Act.
The species of short-lived, surface-feeding fish has been listed as a federally endangered species since 1967.
Once the most abundant fish species in the Gila River basin from western New Mexico to central and western Arizona, the minnow declined in the face of habitat loss, degradation and predation by non-native fish.
Today, the Arizona Game and Fish Department reports more than 70 populations of Gila topminnow have been reestablished throughout the fish's natural range.
A 12-month review is now underway to determine whether the fish should be considered threatened or possibly delisted.
