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<br />000658 <br /> <br />FAST FACTS <br />Colorado pikeminnow (Ptychocheilus lucius) <br /> <br /> <br />. , <br />,Y4~'." <br /> <br />e Joseph R. Tomelleri <br /> <br />Distinguishing Features: <br />)> Olive-green and gold back. silvery-white belly <br />)> Generally grow 18 to 22 inches long weighing 2 to 4 pounds but have been <br />historically known to reach up to 6 feet and 80 pounds or more. Fish larger <br />than three feet are common <br />)> Torpedo shaped body. upper jaw extends to or beyond the middle of the eye <br /> <br />Specifics: <br />)> Range currently limited to the upper Colorado River Basin <br />~ Largest species of minnow native to North America <br />);> Thought to have evolved 3 to 5 million years ago <br />)> Have been known to live 40 years <br />y Capable of spawning at an age of 5 to 6 years; spawns in late spring and <br />summer <br />);> Known to migrate more than 200 miles to spawn <br />y Young feed primarily on insects; adults feed mainly on other fish <br />)> Natural habitat is in the Colorado River Basin <br />)> Valued as food by early settlers and miners of the Colorado River Basin <br />)> Known as the .white salmon" or "Colorado salmon" by settlers <br /> <br />Status: <br />)> Listed as endangered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as of 1967 <br />)> Given full protection under the Endangered Species Act in 1973 <br />)> Listed as endangered under Colorado law in 1976; downlisted to threatened <br />in 1998 <br />)> Listed as protected under Utah law as of 1973 <br />)- Populations are reproducing in the wild in the Green and Colorado rivers <br />)> Populations are stable and increasing in the Green and Colorado rivers <br />);;> Small population present in the San Juan River Basin <br /> <br />July 2000 <br />