Laserfiche WebLink
<br />FOREWORD <br /> <br />As the second decade of intensive research on rare native fishes <br />of the Upper Colorado River Basin comes to an end, it is apparent <br />that a complete understanding of their life histories is paramount in <br />successful management and preservation of these unique species. To <br />fully appreciate the ecology of any species, the ability to identify all <br />of its life stages is essential. <br /> <br />These identification capabilities are especially valuable in the <br />study of rare riverine fishes where sampling habitats and obtaining <br />specimens can be difficult. Typically, however, availability of <br />information on the early life of many fish species is delayed due to <br />the tedious nature of developing taxonomic information for recently- <br />hatched stages. This difficulty in detecting presence or absence of <br />larval and early juvenile fish has hampered data collection on rare <br />species such as the razorback sucker (Xyrauchen texanus). <br /> <br />The razorback sucker, currently listed as endangered in Colorado, <br />is truly a unique species endemic to the Colorado River Basin. Its <br />candidacy for federal protection under the Endangered Species Act <br />attests to recent concern about its prospects for future survival. As <br />a sense of urgency concerning its present abundance in the upper <br />basin builds, the need for adequate tools to study its early-life stages <br />is intensified. <br /> <br />This manual consolidates, refines, enhances, and supplements <br />data and keys in existing publications and reports. In addition to <br />morphological, morphometric, meristic, pigmental, and developmental <br />state characters, it incorporates selected skeletal characters to help <br />distinguish larval and early juvenile fishes. The keys and descriptive <br />accounts are the most definitive prepared to date for early-life stages <br />of catostomids occurring in the Upper Colorado River Basin. This <br />work will prove invaluable as we enter the third decade of research <br /> <br /> <br />00 riverine fish commuruties of;4;;! 7lMy <br /> <br /> <br /> <br />Patrick J. Martinez <br />Wildlife Biologist <br /> <br />DEDICATION <br />We dedicate this publication to <br /> <br />Carroll Lynn Bjork <br /> <br />whose drawings have been the heart of <br />descriptions emanating from the <br />Larval Fish Laboratory. <br /> <br />ill <br />