ABQ BioPark Releases Over 44,000 Endangered Silvery Minnows into Rio Grande
The BioPark’s Aquatic Conservation Facility is making waves in local conservation!
In collaboration with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, staff from the ABQ BioPark Aquatic Conservation Facility (ACF) released 44,341 silvery minnows into the Rio Grande across two locations in Albuquerque this fall.
The Rio Grande silvery minnow used to be one of the most common species in the Rio Grande, but by 1994 its population had declined so greatly that it was added to the federal Endangered Species List. Currently, they only occupy 7% of their historical range.
The BioPark has been part of the recovery program for the silvery minnow since 2000. Each spring, staff collect eggs from the Rio Grande to raise at the ACF. Come fall, the minnows are released into the river in mass if conditions permit.
This year, an initial release of about 18,000 minnows took place October 29 near Central Bridge in Albuquerque. Another release of 26,341 fish was completed November 26 near Alameda Bridge.
You may notice the fish have an orange stripe on their back. ACF curator Patrick Horley said the silvery minnows are tagged with a small stripe of visible implant elastomer (VIE) on their back before they are released. This informs biologists that the tagged fish is a hatchery fish which gives them more insight into the success of the program and the wild population.
The ABQ BioPark is proud to contribute to the conservation and care of this species. These fish form the base of the food web in the Rio Grande and indicate the health of the entire river ecosystem. If they were lost, the impact reaches far beyond a single species.
Take a peek into the October 2025 release and learn more about the silvery minnow and the challenges they face in this video!