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<br />When water levels receded in the overbank areas, the larvae returned to the main <br />channel. <br />~ Humpback Chub <br />In contrast to the Colorado pikeminnow and razorback sucker, humpback chub are <br />relatively sedentary and occupy restricted river reaches for most or all of the year <br />(Valdez and Clemmer 1982; Valdez and Ryel 1995, 1997). The fish may remain in or <br />near specific eddies for extended periods of time, and may return to the same eddy for <br />~ spawning (Karp and Tyus 1990b). Radio-tagged fish from the UCR at Black Rocks <br />stayed almost entirely within a 1.8 mile reach (Archer et al. 1985, Kaeding et al. 1990). <br />Behavior is similar in the Grand Canyon, where 60 tagged fish were recaptured only <br />about one mile from their original capture location (Valdez and Ryel 1995). Although <br />remaining in one reach for most of the year, the fish tends to make use of microhabitats <br />~ where there is a natural flow regime. Humpback chub in the Yampa River were forced <br />to move into deeper pools as water levels dropped in summer (Karp and Tyus 1990b) <br />and similar behavior was noted in the Little Colorado River (Gorman 1994). <br />Ontogenic shifts in humpback chub habitat use have been reported by Valdez and Ryel <br />~ (1995,1997) in the Grand Canyon, with subadult fish (50- 200 mm TL) using primarily <br />shallow shoreline habitats and adults using deeper offshore habitats. Microhabitats <br />preferred by adult humpback chub during warmer months are large recirculating eddies <br />and slow runs (Valdez and Clemmer 1982, Karp and Tyus 1990b). <br />~ Humpback chub reproduction occurs shortly after peak runoff when water temperatures <br />exceed 16°C (Valdez et al. 1982). In the UCR, spawning has been recorded between <br />mid-June and late July (Archer et al. 1985), although the two years of study were both <br />characterized by unusually high flows that may have delayed spawning. Ripe fish are <br />captured mainly in deep shoreline eddies, but spawning presumably occurs in mid- <br />channel and lateral cobble bars. Virtually nothing is known about habitat preferences of <br />~ the larvae. <br />Postlarval chubs are most often captured in shoreline habitats, including backwaters, <br />small eddies, side channels, and embayments (Valdez et al. 1990), however as the fish <br />grow larger than about 40mm TL they begin to move into deeper and swifter habitats. <br />~ This ontogenic shift in habitat use was dramatic in the Grand Canyon, where younger <br />fish (larvae through subadults (less than 200mm) occupied in shallow shorelines, but <br />adults used deeper offshore habitats (Gorman 1994; Valdez and Ryel 1995,1997). <br />Habitats used by humpback chub are greatly affected by flows. Higher flows tend to <br />~ maintain the recirculating eddies used primarily as habitat for adults. An insectivore, the <br />chub benefit from higher flows that provide allochthonous inputs, including terrestrial <br />insects. <br /> <br />22 <br /> <br />