Our Mission: Conserve and Restore
Native Fish Populations

Conservation Fisheries, Inc. is a non-profit organization based in Knoxville, Tennessee. Founded in 1986 and incorporated in 1992, CFI is a captive propagation facility dedicated to the preservation of aquatic biodiversity in our streams and rivers. Over the last few decades, we have developed techniques to propagate more than 80 non-game fishes, including some of the most imperiled species in the southeastern United States. We are the first and only private facility in the Southeast to propagate rare,
non-game fishes for recovery work.

Our primary goal is to restore fish populations that have been eliminated due to various anthropogenic impacts.
We also produce many rare or difficult-to-collect species for other purposes related to aquatic conservation.

A picture of Abrams Creek in the fall

Where It All Began…

In 1957, Abrams Creek, a mainstay of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, was poisoned to eliminate “rough fish” in favor of a trophy trout stream. In the aftermath, ecologists and conservationists realized that undescribed species of madtoms were among the fish removed from this creek.

This discovery launched a propagation project that would evolve into creating the first private facility to propagate native, non-game fishes in the southeastern United States.

  • Tanks in the CFI Hatchery

    About the Hatchery

    Our main hatchery room holds 850 fish tanks containing ~20,000 total gallons of water. These tanks are grouped into 33 recirculating systems – closed systems of water that run from a sump through plumbing to various tanks, and back again.

    Due to water quality requirements and risk of disease, only one species is held in a recirculating system at a time.

  • Water quality monitoring

    Keeping It Clean

    We monitor water quality monthly in each recirculating system to maintain both safe and preferred water parameters for each species. Parameters that we test for include conductivity, pH, nitrates, nitrites, ammonia, salinity, and more.

    Other routine tank maintenance includes water changes and gravel washing to remove unwanted nitrogen and organics in the form of silt and debris.

    When we are preparing a recirculating system to house a new species, we perform a complete sanitation of the tanks, plumbing, substrate, and habitat to address any biosecurity concerns

  • Fish tanks inside the CFI greenroom

    Controlling for Climate

    Our Spring Room stays at a consistent temperature of 60-70° F at all times during the year. These stable conditions are necessary for species from spring-fed habitats that have very narrow, specific temperature requirements.

    As the global climate continues to warm, we anticipate our need for independently-controlled hatchery space will grow as more habitats and animals are pushed outside of the conditions they have spent millennia adapting to.

  • A CFI employee standing in CFI's darkly-lit Green Room, surrounded by fish tanks.

    A Healthy, Homegrown Diet

    To provide the most healthy and diverse diet for our fish, we supplement high quality frozen foods with live foods that we grow in-house. In our Culture Room, we produce various freshwater planktons, worms, rotifers, and brine shrimp. These tiny live organisms are essential to the survival of our larval fish and provide enrichment and key nutrients for our juvenile and adult fish.

  • An underwater shot of a CFI employee snorkeling in the river.

    In the Field

    Our fieldwork includes non-invasive monitoring and surveying, typically in small, shallow sections of rivers and streams. Observing fish in the wild helps us to better care for them in captivity by providing a deeper understanding of their behaviors and preferred habitats. Snorkeling allows us to get a fish’s eye view of their world and reduces stress on the animals, but sometimes conditions require us to use more traditional methods like seining. We lean on our decades of experience of caring for fish post-capture to inform how to safely handle animals and give them the best opportunity to thrive.