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<br />were in the river upstream of what is now Catamount Reservoir prior to closure of the <br />dam, there is evidence that supports that northern pike were not in the river and instead <br />were illicitly stocked after closure of Stagecoach Reservoir. <br /> <br />The main reason it is unlikely that northern pike were upstream of Catamount <br />Reservoir before closure of the dam is becal,lse given the abundant trout forage <br />available in the reservoir soon after closure, a population of northern pike would have <br />surely developed and been observed well before 1995 (K. Rogers, pers. comm.). A <br />more plausible explanation for the occurrence of northern pike in Catamount Reservoir <br />is that the population was founded from individuals escaping from Stagecoach <br />Reservoir located upstream. Northern pike became established in Stagecoach <br />Reservoir by 1994, with numerous small individuals showing up in gill nets set that year <br />(K. Rogers, pers. comm.). In addition, ages from cleithra of large fish captured over the <br />last several years indicate hatching and therefore reproduction in 1993 (K. Rogers <br />pers. comm.); therefore, adult northern pike were probably introduced to Stagecoach <br />Reservoir very shortly after dam closure. <br /> <br />After 1992, northern pike numbers substantially increased in the Yampa River. <br />An event that could be the likely cause of the increase occurred in the fall of 1992, <br />when the City of Craig, which operates Elkhead Dam and its outlets, initiated a rapid, <br />high volume, prolonged drawdown of Elkhead Reservoir to reduce reservoir water <br />levels to survey for potential reservoir enlargement. During the drawdown, a large <br />portion of the reservoir fishery including northern pike and smallmouth bass were <br /> <br />6 <br />