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<br />e <br /> <br />were classified as endangered species on the state and federal list of <br /> <br />threatened and endangered wildlife. <br /> <br />In 1978, the Colorado Squawfish Recovery Plan was approved by the U.S. <br /> <br />Fish and Wildlife Service (Recovery Team 1978). A recovery plan for the <br /> <br />humpback chub has also been drafted and is pending final approval. Both <br /> <br />recovery plans identify fishery research and management projects which <br /> <br />will hopefully restore these species to at least a non-endangered status. <br /> <br />Both re~overy plans have identified the need to monitor the population <br /> <br />. . <br />and habitat status (Colorado squawfish, tasksll4~lZ2; humpback chub, . <br /> <br />tasks 12,21 ) for these two rare fishes. The strategy of the recovery <br /> <br />plan recommendations is to correlate fish population and habitat changes <br /> <br />within selected areas where Colorado squawfish or humpback chubs are <br /> <br />e <br /> <br />known to occur. If the selected habitats are representative of a larger <br /> <br />area, then these small trend zones can be studied to estimate population <br /> <br />trends throughqut the occupied portion of a river. One method of esti- <br /> <br />mating population status is to monitor reproductive success (or lack of <br /> <br />it) in quantified habitats on an annual basis. As habitat requirement <br /> <br />data becomes available, it should be possible to not only monitor, but <br /> <br />also predict and stimulate changes in endangered fish populations. <br /> <br />It is relatively difficult to indentify larval life stages of Colorado <br /> <br />squawfish or humpback chubs or to differentiate early life stages of <br /> <br />these fishes from those of sympatric species. Many of the larval fishes <br /> <br />examined during this project were used to develop an identification key <br /> <br />3 <br /> <br />e <br />