Laserfiche WebLink
administered. The fish was placed in a bucket of fresh water and allowed to recover from the <br />effects of the anesthetic. After it had regained equilibrium, the fish was released into slow water <br />near the capture location. Attempts to relocate radio-tagged fish occurred as time permitted, so <br />no specific relocation schedule was followed, and areas with poor access were searched less <br />frequently than areas with abundant access. Relocation was accomplished with a scanning radio <br />receiver (Advanced Telemetry Systems). <br />Statistical Analyses <br />All statistical calculations were performed with SAS statistical package version 6.11 <br />(SAS Institute, Inc. 1995). Comparisons through time were made by stratifying the data by year <br />collected. Data were also stratified between the Canyon and Woodside sections to make <br />comparisons through space. Chi-square tests were calculated with Proc Freq to determine <br />differences in the percentages of adult and subadult fish through space and time. The following <br />criteria, based on the size of mature individuals captured and literature values, were used to <br />distinguish between adults and subadults: flannelmouth suckers, 400 mm (McAda and Wydoski <br />1985, personal observation); Colorado pikeminnow, 400 mm (Seethaler 1978); bluehead suckers, <br />200 mm (personal observation); channel catfish, 300 mm (Carlander 1969); common carp, 250 <br />mm (personal observation). Descriptive statistics were calculated with Proc Means and Proc <br />Freq, and analysis of variance tests were calculated with Proc GLM. All outcomes with a <br />probability level of less than or equal to 0.05 were considered to be significantly different. <br />RESULTS <br />Habitat Sampling <br />Spring peak discharge near Woodside was approximately 2,550 cubic feet per second in <br />1996 and 3,260 cubic feet per second in 1997 (personal estimation based on U.S. gauge data <br />collected above Helper), but spring peaks have often exceeded 4,000 cubic feet per second <br />(Figure 3). The peak discharge in 1996 was not as high as it could have been due to early <br />releases from Scofield Reservoir. This flow regime was used in order to keep the reservoir level <br />low enough so that repairs could be made to the dam. A spike flow caused by a hail storm, rather <br />than by operation of Scofield Dam, occurred in early September. This fall peak was larger than <br />the spring peak, but lasted for only a few days, and corresponded to a precipitous drop in the <br />water temperature of the Price River and the Green River (Figure 4). Similar fall peaks in <br />discharge occur nearly every year (U.S. Geological Survey, unpublished data}. Low flows in the <br />Price River were approximately 30 cubic feet per second in 1996 and 1997 (personal estimation <br />based on transect data). However, the discharge of the Price River has dropped below 10 cubic <br />feet per second during several of the years on record (Figure 3). <br />Biological oxygen demand, fecal coliforms, total phosphorus, iron, gross alpha and beta <br />radiation, and total dissolved solids in the Price River often exceed limits recommended by the <br />Utah Division of Water Quality (Table 2). Some of these parameters are probably influenced by <br />human activity in the watershed, but no cause-and-effect relationships were determined. <br />6 <br />