Laserfiche WebLink
<br />INTRODUCTION <br /> <br />The Recovery Implementation Program for the Endangered Fishes of the <br />Upper Colorado River Basin (Recovery Program) was established in 1988 with a <br />cooperative agreement to recover and delist endangered fishes while providing the <br />potential for existing and new water development to proceed in the Upper Basin <br />(USFWS 1987; Hamill 1993). The four endangered fishes; humpback chub <br />(Gila cypha), bony tail (Gila elegans), Colorado pikeminnow (Ptychocheilus lucius), <br />and razorback sucker (Xyrauchen texanus); will be considered recovered once self- <br />sustaining populations and habitat are established. <br /> <br />The process of recovery within the Upper Basin is guided by a management <br />plan known as the Recovery Implementation Program, Recovery Action Plan <br />(RIPRAP, USFWS 1995). The RIPRAP outlines actions necessary to achieve <br />recovery of the endangered fishes based on the best available biological <br />information and the recovery goals for each species. It guides future planning, <br />research, and recovery efforts including the annual work plan and budgeting. <br />Annual review allows modification of the plan as knowledge increases about the <br />fish or the ecosystem, as priorities change, or as states develop their entitlement. <br /> <br />The RIPRAP applies recovery actions to each of seven sub-basins of the <br />Upper Colorado River Basin, including the Green, Yampa and Little Snake, <br />Duchesne, White, Colorado, Gunnison, and Dolores rivers. The Little Snake River <br />is the largest tributary of the Yampa River which has been identified as a river of <br />high priority for recovery of endangered fishes in the Upper Basin. The purposes <br />of this document are to describe the fishery and hydrology resources of the Little <br />Snake River sub-basin that are important for the conservation of endangered fishes <br />of the Colorado River Basin, identify data deficiencies, and outline a research plan <br />to resolve uncertainties. The plan will follow the guidelines and format of the <br />RIPRAP to direct recovery of endangered fishes in the Little Snake River in <br />