New license plate to feature New Mexico state fish

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico drivers can now get a license plate featuring the state's official fish — the Rio Grande cutthroat trout. A portion of the initial $27 fee for the plate and nearly all of the $12 annual renewal fee will go to the state's Share with Wildlife program, which helps pay for research, habitat improvements, rehabilitation programs and education around New Mexico. Aside from the wildlife license plates, the program gets much of its funding through a state income tax check-off program. The Rio Grande cutthroat trout was once found from southern Colorado into New Mexico. But its numbers are now limited to roughly 10 percent of its historic range. Environmentalists have sued and are seeking to have the fish added to the federal list of threatened and endangered species.