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RECOVERY PRffiRAM FOR THE ENDANGERED HSHES ~~OF THE UPPER COIORAID Win/er 1992 New Gunnison River studies to evaluate altering river flows, constructing fish ladder Connie Young Public Information Specialist Colorado Division of Wildi~e Endangered fish in the Gunnison River may one day be "up a creek" _ but not without a ladder, This spring, state and federal biologists will begin a study to detennine if endangered fish could benefit from a specially con- structed concrete ladder that would guide them around a diversion dam. expanding the fishes' range by 50 miles, Biologists hope endangered Colorado squaw fish and razorback suckers would use the ladder to migrate into the Gunnison River. Fish ladders have been used successfully with salmon and northern squawfish. but have not been tried with Colorado River endangered fish, The study also will evaluate whether changing the operation of Blue Mesa Dam, upstream of the Black Canyon of the Gunnison .." ....:..:::... ..". ...... .. ........ INs'DEf , .. ... . . . .. .. ...., . '. .... if'aQ~~. ". k~i~;tkc~i.~i~~'fij~~~; ~aQ~3i . ... .:":.......:".:. ...... .:....:.::..:".. .:. ... ... .. ....:..:. ".. ......:.:...:".:... . :.::".: ." ::..:. >Three IJSricau!lllii~e>ii~ nillPage3) ... ...... ... .... ,,:ii.g~'i National Monument in Colorado, to provide high-spring flows could help endangered fish survive and success- fully reproduce downstream in the Gunnison and Colorado rivers, The research is funded by a cooperati ve federal and state program aimed at recovering 'endangered Colorado squawfish, humpback chubs, bony tail chubs and razorback suckers in the upper Colorado River Basin while allowing water development to pro- ceed, Colorado squawfish once grew to nearly 6 feet long and were called "white salmon" by early settlers, who harvested them for food, The Gunnison once was home to popula- tions of Colorado squawfish, bonytail chubs and razorback suckers and is considered an "untapped resource" in the fishes' recovery, according to John See LADDER. Page 4 Photo by John Hamill SWIM THIS WAY: A Small version of a fish ladder like this one on the Snake River In Washington could help endangered fish migrate around Redlands Dam In Colorado's Gunnison River. Acquiring Yampa water rights could preserve natural flows, fish habitat By Fred Quartarone looking for alternatives that would Public Information Assistant meet future demands for water and Colorado Division of Wildlife recreation in the Yampa River basin, Preserving endangered fish habitat In August 1990, local, state and and 75 percent of flows in one of the federal agencies began a two-year West's last relatively unregulated study to examine replacing a proposal rivers eould be outcomes of a study to build two reservoirs _ Juniper and evaluating alternative reservoir sites in Cross Mountain - with one or more northwest Colorado, alternative reservoirs outside endan- Expansion of Stagecoach and Elkhead reservoirs are two options out See YAMPA, Page 2 of five under review by a task force