9632

• UCREFRP Catalog Number: 9632
• Author: HAwkins, J. A. and J. O'Brian.
• Title: Management Action Plan for Endangered Fish Recovery in the Little Snake River, Colorado and Wyoming - Draft Final Report.
• USFW Year: 2001.
• USFW - Doc Type: Fort Collins, CO.
• Copyright Material: NO

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The Little Snake River is the largest tributary of the Yampa River which is a
river of high priority for recovery of endangered fishes in the Upper Colorado River
Basin. This document is a Management Action Plan (MAP) for the Little Snake
River sub-basin. The goal of the MAP is to develop a plan that defines the actions
necessary to protect, recover, or restore the Little Snake River for endangered
fishes following guidelines of the Recovery Implementation Program, Recovery
Action Plan (RIPRAP) that directs recovery of endangered fishes in the Little Snake
River in Colorado and Wyoming in the context of basin-wide recovery actions.
The four endangered fishes; humpback chub (Gila cyphal, bony tail (G. elegans),
Colorado pikeminnow (Ptychocheilus luciusl, and razorback sucker (Xyrauchen
texanus); will be considered recovered once self-sustaining populations and habitat
are established.
The objectives were to:
1 . Review and summarize hydrology and geomorphology information of
the Little Snake River.
2. Review and summarize fisheries information of the Little Snake River.
3. Identify missing information critical to managing the Little Snake River
for recovery of endangered fishes.
4. Develop a hierarchy to obtain missing information so that priorities can
be set.
5. Develop a step-down Instream Flow Work Plan that lists actions
necessary to identify and protect Instream Flows for the recovery of
endangered fishes in the Upper Basin.

The Little Snake River is significant to endangered Colorado River fishes for
two primary reasons. First, it provides mainstream habitat for humpback chub and

v