Laserfiche WebLink
32 <br />0-I, 5 60 mm TL) squawfish occur only in the lower 32 km (20 miles) of <br />Yampa Canyon (Haynes and Muth, 1982; Miller et al., 1982b). Few, if <br />any, juvenile squawfish (age I-IV, 60-400 mm TL) have been collected in <br />the Yampa River. The largest documented concentration of juvenile <br />squawfish near the Yampa River spawning area is in the Jensen-Ouray area <br />of the Green River (Holden, 1977; Miller et al., 1982a). Adult Colorado <br />squawfish (age V+, >400 mm TL) were captured throughout the Yampa River <br />study area. Current records indicate that no adult squawfish originally <br />Carlin-tagged in the Yampa River above Yampa Canyon have been recaptured <br />in other rivers. However, recaptures in the Yampa have yielded fish <br />originally Carlin-tagged on the Green and White rivers (Miller et al., <br />1982b). These observations lead to the following conclusions: <br />1. Fish from the Yampa, White, and Green rivers use the Yampa Canyon <br />spawning area and then return to their resident home range. <br />2. Recruitment of adult Colorado squawfish (>400 mm TL) into the Upper <br />Yampa River likely originates from nursery areas in the middle and <br />lower Green River, downstream from Jensen, Utah. <br />3. Squawfish that establish residency in the Yampa River tend to <br />remain within their home range throughout the year except to spawn. <br />Larval fish collections <br />The larval collection effort yielded a total of 12 individuals, <br />9.5-21 mm in length, only below the known spawning areas (Appendix C). <br />Larger individuals (mean length 17.6 mm) were collected from isolated <br />pools in backwater areas below river km 1.0. Smaller individuals (mean <br />length 12.6 mm) were collected from areas nearer the spawning site. <br />These observations coupled with similar observations in past years