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12-pound, 20-year-old Colorado squawfish leads investigators to endangered fish habitat By ,Ed Wick Research Associate Larval Fish LaboralOl)' Colorado State Univers~y Fort Collins, Colo. ' The frrst time I saw "Old Bessy" was Oct. 9, 1980, when we caught her on the Yampa River two miles upstream of the Little Snake confluence. Old Bessy was one of many Colorado squawfrsh tagged that year for the Colorado Division of Wildlife's monitoring program. She was 30 1/2 inches long and weighed 9 pounds. We attached a small yellow plastic tag -- No. 1029 -- on her back below the dorsal fin. On Sept. 11, 1987, Tom Nesler, of the Division of Wildlife, and John Hawkins, of CSU; and I were sampling this same area. Tom was implanting radio tags in nonhern pike to study their reproductive behavior and interactions with native frsh. John and I were implanting radio tags in Colorado squawfish for the second and flllal year of a winter habitat study funded by the Upper Y ampa Water Conservancy District. (See article on "Squawfrsh active...") Our past experience had shown us that angling was one of the best ways to collect adult Colorado squawfish from deep, clear waters. That morning Tom caught a pair of 7-pound Colorado squawfish and a Io-pound pike from the same hole. In the afternoon, I hooked a large squawfish in the same spot Tom had frshed that morning. The charge of the fish to the surface and the 15-minute battle that followed was the most exciting frshing experience I've had in Colorado. There was added excitement when I spotted a moss-covered tag on the back of the fish. I didn't want to lose this one! , The tag was No. 1029. Old Bessy weighed 12 pounds and was 33 inches long -- a gain of only 3 pounds and 2 1/2 inches after seven years. Still, she appeared in excellent condition. After examining her scales, we estimated she was at least 20 years old. We implanted Old Bessy with a radio tag and followed her movements that winter. She moved from pool to pool, but remained within a half mile of her capture location. The next spring John and I were working for the Colorado Division of Wildlife and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation to gather infonnation for the Fish and Wildlife Service on behavior and timing of Colorado squawfish spawning migrations into Yampa Canyon. On two consecutive trips in late April and early May, we could not locate Old Bessy. We asked for help from Harold Tyus, of the Fish and Wildlife Service in Vernal, Utah, but his radio-tracking crews could not locate the fish in either the Yampa River or Green River. On May 24, 1988, we located Old Bessy six miles up the Little Snake River at the lower end of a high-gradient canyon. We took nets with us the next day to sample for humpback chub. We collected two that appeared to be humpback chub in eddy habitats, where currents flow upstream. (See anicle on "Chub identification... ") We also captured Old Bessy. She was in good condition, but did not appear ready to spawn. On later trips down the Little Snake River we located another radio-tagged squawfish and caught five more fish thought to be humpback chub. In late June, Old Bessy was found in the Yampa River near the confluence with the Little Snake. The first week in July, the Fish and Wildlife Service located her in a known spawning area 35 miles downstream in Yampa Canyon. Old Bessy's "fidelity," or tendency to return to the same location at certain times of the year, apparently was quite strong. By October 1988, she had once again returned to her autumn "home" -- the same spot where she had been captured by hook and line in the falls of both 1980 and 1987. Tips for releasing endangered fish Colorado squawjish often are caught by anglers on fhe Yampa River. Thesefish should be reTUrned 10 the river unharmed, as soon as possible. o If possible, leave the fish in the water while removing your hook. o Remove the hook gently;- don't squeeze thefish or put your fingers in its gills. o If your hook is deeply embedded, cut the line instead of pulling out the hook. o Release the fish in quiet water -- only after you're sure its equilibrium is restored. If it is necessary to help restore the fish's equilibrium, gently hold the flShfacing upstream and move if slowly back andforth in the water. If the fISh is tagged, please report the location and tag nwnber to the Colorado Division of Wildlife, (303) 248-7/75, orthe Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, (801) 538-4765. 3