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The Klamath Basin sucker fish are probably like every other sucker fish in the Pacific Northwest. They are not endangered and are a threat to any native fish in the streams where they are predators.

In California many fishers have declared sucker fish as bank fish. That means when you catch them, you stomp their bellies hard on the bank, rip the hook out and stomp their head and leave them on the bank for the predators. I prefer to throw them back in the water to return the nutrients.

They live to eat baby trout, steelhead and salmon. When I really get ticked off at them (when they drive other fish out of hole), I will put on a fly that resembles a baby trout, steelhead or salmon. Then I will become a junkfish serial killer of these worthless fish. I just did this week on the Russian River after two hard days of fishing with no steelhead and just sucker fish. My last hour on the Russian yesterday, I looked like a serial sucker fish killer.

In some streams north of the Klamath Basin, there is a bounty or payment for each dead sucker fish, you catch and kill. I can't see any real difference between these fish and the Klamath Basin Barbara Boxer nosed sucker fish.