The Sheepheaven Creek redband trout is a local Californian variety of the rainbow trout (''Oncorhynchus mykiss''), a freshwater fish in the family

Salmonidae Salmonidae is a family of ray-finned fish that constitutes the only currently extant family in the order Salmoniformes . It includes salmon (both Atlantic and Pacific species), trout (both ocean-going and landlocked), chars, freshwater whitefis ...

. It is considered either a distinct western form of the McCloud River redband trout (subspecies ''Oncorhynchus mykiss stonei''), or a subspecies of its own, which has not been scientifically named and described yet. It is native to Sheepheaven Creek,

Siskiyou County Siskiyou County (, ) is a county in the northernmost part of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 44,076. Its county seat is Yreka and its highest point is Mount Shasta. It falls within the Cascadia bioregion ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

. It has been transplanted into Swamp Creek in 1972 and 1974 and into Trout Creek in 1977. They can now be found in both locations. Sheepheaven Creek redband are found to be the most distinct among all other trout groups, and therefore has been suggested to merit recognition as a new subspecies. They have the fewest

gill rakers Gill rakers in fish are bony or cartilaginous processes that project from the branchial arch (gill arch) and are involved with suspension feeding tiny prey. They are not to be confused with the gill filaments that compose the fleshy part of t ...

of any western trout.

References

Oncorhynchus Trout, Sheepheaven Trout, Sheepheaven Trout, Sheepheaven Natural history of the California Coast Ranges Natural history of Siskiyou County, California Undescribed vertebrate species {{Salmoniformes-stub