Yellowstone fishing emergency grows as heat forces river closures

Visitors to Yellowstone National Park this summer will find that some of the park’s most famous fishing rivers are closed due to extreme water temperatures.

In a July 15 announcement, Yellowstone National Park Service (NPS) officials said the Madison, Firehole and Gibbon rivers would be temporarily closed to fishing until further notice.

The affected rivers are all on the west and northwest sides of Yellowstone, near some of the park’s busiest tourist attractions, with the Firehole River running through the Old Faithful area.

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Closings are valid 24 hours a day. Officials blamed unusually high water temperatures that could be lethal to Yellowstone’s famous trout.

“Highest water temperatures in recent days have ranged from 80 to 86 degrees Fahrenheit during the day,” the statement said.

“Combined with high temperatures, these conditions are lethal to trout, and there have been reports of dead fish in the Firehole River.”

There are currently no temperature-related fishing restrictions on any other lakes, rivers or streams in the park, officials added.

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Temporary closures “will protect the park’s native and wild trout fisheries and remain in effect until conditions improve,” according to NPS.

Steven J. Cooke, a biology professor at Carleton University in Canada, said trout struggle to survive in exceptionally hot water because their bodies, along with their environment, are warm.

Visitors planning to fish in Yellowstone this summer are asked to check current restrictions as warm water temperatures are affecting many popular rivers. (iStock)

“Fish are ectotherms, which means their body temperature is the same as the water temperature,” Cooke told Fox News Digital.

“At high temperatures, trout have a hard time getting enough oxygen and may not recover when released.”

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Cooke, based in Ottawa, Ontario, added that fishermen “need to get used to these types of closures because they will become more common.”

Fishermen “need to get used to these types of closures as they will become more common.”

“However, if anglers up their game and improve their fishing skills by minimizing fight time and eliminating exposure to air, this will be better for the fish and allow fishing to continue,” he said.

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“We find the same is true for muskellunge fishermen in the Midwest or Atlantic salmon fishermen in the Northeast.”

Cooke, who sits on the board of the nonprofit organization Keep Fish Wet, said regulations such as closing fisheries in national parks “make more sense” to ensure sensitive resources are protected.

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Keep Fish Wet educates anglers on science-based best practices for catch-and-release fishing to maximize fish survival.

Reports of dead fish in the Firehole River underscore the need to temporarily close fishing during unusually warm conditions, park officials said. (iStock)

Yellowstone has long been a popular destination for anglers, according to NPS’s website.

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“Yellowstone supports some of the world’s most famous fishing grounds and has been a destination for generations of fishermen for more than 150 years,” the site states. The statement is included.

NPS’s website says Yellowstone has long been a popular destination for fishermen. (Getty Images)

“Fishing regulations are designed to protect the abundance and genetic integrity of native fish, the overall ecological integrity of the park, and recreational fishing for park visitors.”

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Fox News Digital has reached out to NPS for comment.