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<br />~ <br /> <br />Because of the large number offish collected in 1995 and 1996, total biomass of all fish <br />collected was recorded, but length and weight data were subsampled. Total weight was <br />determined for large (i.e. age-l +) fish by species. Subsamples of length and weight were <br />obtained from each species batch weighed. Subsamples of small (age-O and small cyprinds) <br />fishes were taken to estimate composition. Total weight of mixed species batches were recorded <br />and subsample weights were used to determine the percent composition of the subsample. <br />Subsamples of the original subsamples were taken to estimate length and weight distribution by <br />species and total number in the overall sample. All small fish were scanned on a sorting table for <br />the presence of native /listed species (with the exception of the last drain day in 1995 when <br />volume of fish collected was beyond the capability of sorting, in this case samples were scanned <br />for the presence of native fish in the seine after it was removed from the water). <br />In 1996, fish in the drainage outlet were sampled with the same gear over time. Dates of <br />fish collection were compared, by species, to determine if fish numbers collected differed over <br />time. This effort included removal of fish with 25 mm mesh seines until large fish were <br />removed, and then use of 3 mm mesh seines to capture smaller fishes during each collection day. <br />For biomass comparison, the following sizes offish were considered age-O fish; carp <150 mm, <br />green sunfish <75 mm, black bullhead Amierus melas <100 mm, channel catfish Ictalurus <br />punctatus <150 mm, black crappie Pomoxis nigromaculatus <150 mm. <br /> <br />Results <br />In 1994, only five species were collected during wetland draining, whereas 15 and 16 <br />species were collected in 1995 and 1996, respectively (Tables 4, 5, and 6). Northern pike Esox <br />lucius was not collected in 1995. Sand shiners Notropis stramenius and speckled dace <br />Rhynichthys osculus were identified only in 1996, but were probably present in 1995 and <br />categorized as miscellaneous minnows. The biomass collected among years represented a <br />standing stock of 12.6 kg/ha, 126.7 kg/ha, and 71.4 kg/ha in 1994, 1995 and 1996, respectively. <br />The low biomass in 1994 was probably due both to the attempts to exclude fish in the spring and <br />escapement through the drain. The composition of fishes collected during draining was <br />dominated by nonnative fishes, particularly carp and fathead minnows. These two species <br />together made up 94.4% of the weight and 78.9% of the fish collected in all three years. Carp <br />made up the majority of biomass (90.4%) and fathead minnows were the most numerous fish <br />(59.6%) collected during draining. Other species contributing over 1 % of either biomass or <br />numbers among all years include green sunfish, black bullhead, channel catfish and red shiners. <br />Adult fish accessing the wetland from the Green River dominated the biomass of fish <br />collected when draining Old Charley Wash (Figure 15). Fish accessing the wetland directly from <br />the Green River represented 84%,80%, and 77% of the biomass offish collected when the <br />wetland was drained in 1994, 1995 and 1996, respectively (fathead minnows and red shiners <br />were included in the category of fish produced in the wetland, although many probably accessed <br />the wetland from the river). Although making up only a fraction of the biomass collected during <br />draining, age-O fishes consisted of the majority of fish numbers collected. In 1995 and 1996 the <br />biomass of age-O black bullhead and black crappie Pomoxis nigromaculatus was greater than <br />age-l + fish. Biomass of age-O green sunfish was greater than age-l + fish in 1996. <br />Razorback sucker was the most abundant native fish collected during draining Old <br />Charley Wash in both 1995 and 1996. The 28 age-O razorback sucker collected in 1995 averaged <br /> <br />34 <br />