Wildlife Diversity Program Quarterly Report for January–March 2026
An Update On Freshwater Drum Reintroductions In The French Broad River
by Dylan Owensby, Western Aquatic Wildlife Diversity Biologist
B iologists with the Western Region of the Aquatic Wildlife Diversity (AWD) Program have continued efforts to restore Freshwater Drum, Aplodinotus grun- niens , populations in the upper French Broad River. Freshwater Drum, North Carolina State Listed as Special Concern, are one of many fish species that are found in the lower French Broad River that are currently unable to occupy their former native range farther upstream. A combination of past water quality issues and three dams on the mainstem French Broad, all of which are located downstream of Asheville, has prevented the fish from returning to large portions of the watershed that they once inhabited. This spring, 70 Freshwater Drum were collected by biologists with the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency in the French Broad River at the mouth of Lake Douglas in Tennessee. AWD biologists then translocated the fish to the upper French Broad River near Etowah, NC. Each Freshwater Drum was implanted with a Passive Inte- grated Transponder (PIT) tag to evaluate survival and growth of recaptured individuals. PIT tags will also help evaluate the use of restored slough habitats that have recently been created in the upper French Broad River. Three of the sloughs are outfitted with PIT tag antennas and will detect the Freshwater Drum when they enter the newly established habitat. Since Spring 2023, AWD biol- ogists have translocated 403 Freshwater Drum to the upper French Broad River. Not only will the reintroduction of species like the Freshwater Drum help to reestablish the native fish assemblage of the upper French Broad River, but these efforts will also improve mussel populations by establish- ing an important host fish for imperiled mussel species. For example, Freshwater Drum are the only known fish host for the Pink Heelsplitter, Potamilus alatus. The Pink Heelsplitter, North Carolina State Listed as Special Con- cern, is only found where Freshwater Drum occur and they currently only have a limited distribution in the Madison County portion of the French Broad River in North Carolina.
DYLAN OWENSBY/NCWRC
Above: NCWRC Aquatic Wildlife Diversity Technician, Quentin LaChance, releasing Freshwater Drum into the French Broad River in Etowah, NC. Below: Freshwater Drum from the French Broad River at Lake Douglas, Tennessee.
DYLAN OWENSBY/NCWRC
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