Kevin N. Leftwich, C. Andrew Dolloff, and Martin K. Underwood, U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service Center for Aquatic Technology Transfer, Department of Fisheries and Wildlife Sciences, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA 24061-0321; and Victoria R. Bishop, U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service, Daniel Boone National Forest, 1700 By-Pass Road, Winchester, KY 40391

Abstract. We used Basinwide Visual Estimation Techniques (BVET) to determine the distribution and abundance of the Federally Threatened blackside dace Phoxinus cumberlandensis in Middle Fork Beaver Creek, Kentucky during 1995. Blackside dace were found in over 75 percent of the pools and nearly 25 percent of the riffles in the 10 km study section. We estimated 3,284 ± 651 blackside dace in pools. Immediate mortality from electrofishing was less than 0.1 percent and delayed mortality less than two percent of the estimated population. The BVET is a safe, reliable method for determining distribution and abundance of blackside dace.