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_..~.,,.....~._~~.._.~ ~en.~,..~..~~.~,~,.~~,F..~- <br />b <br />Containment of the lower Colorado River, which at one time flowed <br />through multiple, braided channels, bordered by extensive marshes <br />and oxbow -akes (Fig. 2), has produced essentially asluice-way or large <br />canal, and operations for power and irrigation create a habitat that cannot <br />be considered similar to the natural condition in any way. Many fishes <br />live throughout the lower mainstream, but the native #auna is essentially <br />gone, and also appears on the decline in upstream reaches. Almost all <br />large rivers of the state have suffered modifications that resulted in <br />over-all effects similar to those occurring in the lower Colorado. A few <br />segments, however, such as the Salt River in its canyon (Fig. 3) provide <br />superficial glimpses of the past in its fauna and to the eye. <br />Artificial canals and ditches, results of man's development of the <br />waters just discussed, now constitute major aquatic habitats in Arizona <br />and elsewhere in the arid west (Pennak, 1958; Cole, 1963). These range <br />1 <br />