9350

• UCREFRP Catalog Number: 9350
• Author: Hawkins, J., T. Modde and J. Bundy.
• Title: Ichthyogauna of the Little Snake River, Colorado, 1995 with Notes on Movements of Humpback Chub.
• USFW Year: 2001.
• USFW - Doc Type: Denver.
• Copyright Material: NO

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The reasons for rarity of nonnative fishes in the Little Snake River compared
to other Upper Colorado River Basin rivers are unknown but regulating factors may
include extremely low baseflow, sediment laden spates during baseflow, high
suspended sediment load, or high amplitude of diel water temperatures during
baseflow. Understanding the relationship of these physico-chemical extremes and
fish community structure would assist in perpetuating native fish assemblages in
western river systems. Based on our results we recommend:
1. Identify and maintain the discharge and physico-chemical conditions in the
Little Snake River that support Colorado pikeminnow, humpback chub, and a
mostly native fish community. These conditions might include the timing,
magnitude, and pattern of runoff and baseflow and associated physico-
chemical conditions such as turbidity, diel temperature fluctuations, or
sediment load.
2. Better describe the migrations and interactions of humpback chub between
the Little Snake and Yampa rivers, possibly through intensive telemetry
studies.
3. Identify spawning sites for humpback chub that reside in the Yampa River
and Little Snake River.
4. Include humpback chub and Colorado pikeminnow that reside in the Little
Snake River with Yampa River abundance estimates.

Key words: Colorado pikeminnow, humpback chub, Little Snake River, native
fishes, nonnative fishes, removal population estimate, reproduction,
spawning, tributary.