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and Biological Environment at Flaming Gorge Reservoir" (Varley and Gaufin 1975) and "Effect of Rainbow Trout on the Quantity, Size and Species Composition of the Zooplankton on Flaming Gorge Reservoir" (Varley 1975), 5, A detailed description of the development of the fisheries in the Flaming Gorge tailwater area and the Green River above Flaming Gorge Reservoir will be documented in separate papers from both fisheries departments. Also, produced as part of the Federal Aid contract requirements, are comprehensive annual progress reports summarizing fishery and limnological data collected and analyzed between 1964 and 1971. These reports are available from the libraries ofthe state agencies and the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. DESCRIPTION Fisheries associated with Flaming Gorge Reservoir may have developed differently from other main stem impoundments because of three features. First, from the standpoint of a political feature the reservoir straddles the Utah and Wyoming state lines requiring, for successful fisheries management, a cooperative and unified effort of administration and field activities by two state agencies and up to three federal agencies. Second, from a geological standpoint, the reservoir is unusual in that it is 16,997 hectares (42,000 smface acres) at an elevation of 1,841 meters (6,040 ft) extending through two distinct topographical regions (Fig. 1), The northern two-thirds of the reservoir is surrounded by a desert type landscape of easily erodible roIling hills, buttes, gulleys, chimneys and ledge rocks. The rock beds of the desert area are principally horizontal tertiary strata of shales, colored sandstones and limestones, Some of these beds yield various soluble salts which have a profound effect on the salinity of the waters of the region. The soils are primarily saline clay loams with interspersed gravels. The vegetation is quite uniform and consists primarily of shadscale (Atriplex condertifalia), big sagebrush (Artemisa tridentata), and little sagebrush (A, nova). The southern one-third of the reservoir, situated in the Unita Mountains is characterized by steep slopes and terraced cliffs with rock beds of chiefly sandstones, limestones and shales of the Mesa Verde, Mancos, Navajo, Weber and Park City formations. Soils in this area consist of sand and sandy rock loams. Vegetation on the south facing canyon slopes is made up of scattered juniper (Juniperous onteosperma) and pinyon (Pinus edulis) with some big sagebrush understory. On the north facing slopes vegetation is characterized by juniper-pinyon, birchleaf mountain mahogany (Cirocopus mountain us) and scattered douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii), Yellow pine (Pinus ponderosa) and lodgepole pine (P, contordata) are found on the higher slopes of the Uinta Mountains above the reservoir. The geography and elevation ofthe region influence the temperatures which are extreme and abrupt, and range from _60.50 C (_500 F) to nearly 380 C (1000 F) with a yearly mean of approximately 100 C (500 F). Annually, precipitation ranges from approximately 18 cm (7 in) from the upper reservoir drainages to 30 cm (12 in) in the areas represented by the lower one-third of the reservoir, Near the middle of the reservoir the impoundment is fed by streams originating 3