KMZs and other files showing the distribution of Westslope Cutthroat are available from the download system.

The West Slope Cutthroat Trout is one of the most widely distributed sub-species, with pockets still surviving in Washington and Oregon, and the main distribution covering a large swathe across Idaho and Montana.  We've developed two data sources which should help you find a native population.  The first is a set of KMZ files we created from the Westslope cutthroat trout 2002 status assessment performed by Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks, Fisheries Division. The second is a kmz file published by Trout Unlimited's Conservation Stream Index (be sure to scroll down to see this set).  Both are available from the ">Native Downloads" link in the "Native Resources" menu in the sidebar.

The 2002 Status Assessment was done under a Federal contract, and all of the state and Federal agencies in the range pooled their data.  The data is coded for abundance and genetic purity.  The principal set of intrerest is the present range (we also provide the historic range) broken down into one kmz where abundance is known, and a second where it is unknown.  In the photo below, you see the known streams in various shades of fuschia (lighter means more abundant).  Unknown streams are grey.

You can zoom in and click on a stream to see more information.  Of particular interest might be genetic purity.  You'll find an explanation of the coding scheme in the kmz header.  In this case, Cooper Creek was coded "H", which means the analyst believed the stream was original strain, but hadn't tested it.  An "A" rating means an original strain stream which has been tested.

Source for both above photos: Westslope cutthroat trout 2002 status assessment,
Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks, Fisheries Division and Google Earth

The TU CSI kmz provides basin-level habitat data.  CSI uses a quantitative model to rate likely habitat quality.  Basins are color coded in order of quality: blue, green, yellow, orange, red.  Brown basins show the original range but where the species has been extirpated.  Interestingly, you can load the TU and the 2002 data and view both.  They are largely consistent, but there are numerous inconsistencies as well.

Source:  Google Earth image using data provided by Trout Unlimited's Conservation Success Index