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<br />RESULTS AND DISCUSSION <br /> <br />Colorado Squawfish Spawning <br /> <br />Investigations over the past six years by a number of investigators in <br />the UCRB have illustrated that spawning behavior of Colorado squawfish <br />is both complex and highly variable. Major migrations to specific <br />spawning areas observed in the Green and Yampa Rivers have not been as <br />evident in the Colorado. Two areas in the Green and Yampa Rivers are <br />well documented through repetitive observations of several indicators <br />but several other spawning areas are believed to exist in the Green and <br />Colorado Rivers though their location has not yet been well defined. <br /> <br />Prespawning migrations <br /> <br />Extensive spawning migrations have been consistently observed during the <br />past five years in the Green and Yampa Rivers through radiotelemetry and <br />recapture of tagged fish. This behavior has not been as evident in the <br />Colorado River where a shorter period of research has been carried out <br />and radio tracking has been less successful. The reasons for these <br />divergencies are not clear but circumstances may differ enough to elicit <br />differences in behavior between the two systems. It is clear that <br />Colorado squawfish do have specific spawning habitat requirements and <br />that they do migrate whatever distance is necessary to locate and <br />utilize those habitats. Radiotracking and tag returns have demonstrated <br />extensive migrations to and from the spawning area in the Yampa and Gray <br />Canyon on the lower Green (Figure 1) but this has not been the case in <br />the mainstem Colorado River above Lake Powell (Figure 2). In the Green <br />and Yampa Rivers movement towards the spawning areas of radio-tagged <br />fish has commenced in early June except in 1981 when May and June flows <br />were only about 38% of average and significantly different fluvial <br />condi tions occurred. In the Colorado River movement increased during <br />the spawning period but no concerted movement to common areas was <br />observed. Tracking success was very good in the Green and Yampa systems <br />with 50% of the fish being tracked through the spawning period. Main- <br />taining contact with radio-tagged Colorado squawfish was more difficult <br /> <br />10 <br />