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I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The bony tail chub (Gila eleqans) was listed as an endangered species by the U.S~ Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) on April 23, 1980. The original recovery plan was approved on May 16, 1984; this is a revision of that plan. The bony tail chub is very rare. In the Colorado River Basin, few individuals have been found in the last decade, and recruitment is apparently nonexistent or extremely low. The largest known concentration of the fish is found in lake Mohave. The decline of the bony tail chub has been attributed to stream alteration caused by construction of dams, flow depletion from irrigation and other uses, hybridization with other Gila, and the introduction of nonnative fish species. The recovery goal in the short-term is to prevent extinction of the bony tail chub. In the long-term, once the immediate threat of extinction is removed, quantitative goals for downlisting and delisting will be addressed. Recovery criteria will be developed after completion of various recovery actions. The major actions needed to secure the survival of the bony tail chub are: - Prevent extinction of the bony tail chub by establishing a genetically diverse captive population for use in efforts to reintroduce the fish into the wild. - Obtain essential information on the life history and habitat requirements of the bony tail chub. - Resolve taxonomic problems in Colorado River basin chubs; the bony tail, humpback, and roundtail. - Develop quantitative recovery goals and a long-term habitat protection strategy. The bony tail chub is being recovered in concert with the humpback chub, Colorado squawfish,. and the razorback sucker. The "Recovery Implementation Program for Endangered Fish Species in the Upper Colorado River Basin" (Recovery Program) identifies specific recovery tasks and strategies to be employed in recovering these fish in the Upper Colorado River Basin. The goal of the Recovery Program is to recover the Colorado River fishes in the Upper Colorado River Basin, excluding the San Juan River, by the year 2003 at an estimated cost of $59 million. The Service considers the Recovery Program a stepdown effort of the recovery plans for the listed Colorado River fish and the primary mechanism for implementing this plan in the Upper Colorado River Basin. Development of a similar program for the lower Colorado River Basin is being planned. An estimated recovery cost and recovery date will be established for the Lower Basin during the development of this program. iv