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<br />37 <br /> <br />Sportfish stocking <br /> <br />Clearly no agency has eliminated stocking of all nonnative fishes as a means to reduce <br />potential, adverse effects to native fish fauna; nor has any state set aside a stream or <br />drainage exclusively for the maintenance and management of native fish fauna. Criteria <br />governing the introduction or stocking of nonnative fish species, however, are being <br />implemented in Colorado and Utah, and will be described more fully in the context of <br />Question 14. Use of sterile hybrid channel catfish in the White River,Colorado, has been <br />proposed, although no stocking or evaluation has occurred. <br /> <br />Eradication <br /> <br />This technique has been used largely to restore native trout populations in headwater <br />streams. Chemical eradication of introduced salmonids to establish greenback and Rio <br />Grande cutthroat trout and Gila trout has been accomplished successfully in Utah, Colorado, <br />and New Mexico though the potential threat of unauthorized reintroduction of nonnative <br />trout is recognized. In New Mexico, one respondent indicated populations of illegal grass <br />carp have also been successfully eliminated. The removal of red shiner from the Virgin <br />River, Utah, by chemical eradication was judged to be partially successful and repetition was <br />recommended to complete the task. <br /> <br />Eradication by means other than chemical toxicants has not been formally developed, <br />initiated or evaluated. In Utah and Colorado where selective removal of northern pike is <br />occurring as a research activity, the efficiency of removal by capture and the resultant effect <br />upon the population have yet to be evaluated. <br /> <br />Habitat management <br /> <br />Manipulation of flows as a habitat management technique has yet to be rigorously <br />tested as a cause-effect relationship. Apparent associations of the reproductive success of <br />native and nonnative fishes to high and low spring flows have been noted as a sidelight in <br />several previous survey-type studies conducted throughout the upper basin. These <br />relationships are being further examined on the Green River with existing flow <br />recommendations, and on the upper mainstem Colorado River, Colorado. <br /> <br />Physical habitat manipulation affecting reproductive success of northern pike in <br />riverine spawning habitat or isolation of off-channel ponds favorable to centrarchid spawning <br />have also not been attempted <br /> <br />Hatchery augmentation <br /> <br />Apart from native salmonid restoration or recovery programs, very few examples of <br />augmentation of native fishes with hatchery stocks exist The stocking of bonytail in the <br />Green River and razorback sucker in the Gila River met with very poor success. The <br />