The Cannibal of Montana’s Streams: A History of Bull Trout in the Bitterroot

Once condemned as an aquatic menace, the bull trout was hunted, despised, and blamed for the decline of prized sport fish in Montana. Today it stands as a valued native species and a symbol of ecological fragility in the US West. The Cannibal of Montana’s Streams tells the remarkable story behind that transformation. Focusing on the Bitterroot River basin of western Montana, Adam R. Hodge traces the intertwined histories of a fish, a watershed, and a settler society that reshaped both. Drawing on historical documents, scientific research, and Native American oral traditions, he reveals how irrigation, logging, dam construction, livestock grazing, and the introduction of nonnative fish altered aquatic ecosystems and marginalized bull trout populations. At the same time, he charts a dramatic shift in human attitudes. A species once vilified as a predator threatening recreational fishing gradually came to be understood as a crucial apex predator and a key indicator of watershed health. The rise of modern fisheries science, environmental activism, endangered species recovery efforts, and watershed restoration initiatives all contributed to this reversal in perception. The Cannibal of Montana’s Streams offers a compelling “biography” of a species—and a powerful reminder that human ambitions can transform entire ecosystems, often with lasting and irreversible consequences.