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Lake Chub

Scientific name: Couesius plumbeus

Lake chub inhabits cold-water lakes and streams with clean gravel and is native to about 2/3rds of the state's watersheds. Its distribution in the Adirondacks has undergone little change but there has been a substantial decline in about half the watersheds. Its abundance has declined in the Delaware, Saint Lawrence and Raquette, while it is to levels below detection in the Ontario, Oswego and Lower Hudson watersheds. These declines occurred in peripheral and lower-elevation areas where water temperature may be a factor.