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31 <br />large slow moving backwater areas to narrow, deep and turbulent rapids. <br />Shallow riffle areas were often present above deep pools and alongside the <br />main river channel. Below Atches Wash the river became wider and much more <br />uniform in depth and flow as the river progressed downstream to the confluence <br />of the Green River. As the diversity of the river habitat decreased there <br />was a corresponding increase in numbers of exotic fish. The White River below <br />Mountain Fuel Bridge is utilized for irrigation, an activity which Seethaler <br />et al. (1979) have suggested may be a possible cause for deterioration of river <br />habitat in the upper Colorado River Basin due to increased leaching of the <br />soil. This results in increased salinity through return flows and changes in <br />water quality due to the addition of fertilizers, pesticides and other materials. <br />As the physical and chemical characteristics of the Colorado River Basin are <br />changed by man's activities, exotic fish can be expected to become more and <br />more abundant (Berry, 1979). <br />Different types of sampling methods may be selected for a specific size or <br />species of fish. By using different sampling methods in this study, more <br />accurate data on fish species composition and relative abundance was obtained. <br />For example, sampling with the electrofishing boat showed a strong bias toward <br />larger fish, especially flannelmouth suckers, because of 1) the locations <br />sampled, 2) the larger fish's susceptibility to the shocking gear, and 3) the <br />fact that large fish were easier to see in the turbid waters (Table 3). <br />Prewitt et al. (1978) also used an electrofishing boat for collecting fish <br />in the Colorado portion of the White River ahd also found large flannelmouth <br />suckers to be the most abundant fish (Table 3). In this study, that bias <br />was reduced by using the shocking-seining technique which was more selective <br />for small fish (Table 3). Larger fish were apparently able to detect the <br />electrical field and/or sein enabling them to escape.