LANDER -- Officials with Wyoming Game and Fish say the population of a native sportfish is on the decline.

Sauger like large, slow-moving rivers with warm, muddy water. But the department says sauger numbers have declined because of dams that block migration routes and because of competition with other species.

Department Fisheries Supervisor Kevin Johnson says the Wind River sauger population is one of the few wild populations left in the Missouri River drainage. He says the department is studying the population in an effort to learn how to protect it from impacts.