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4 <br />and Diaptomus sp.) were common (Moffett 1942). Gammarus fasciatus was <br />introduced into the river in 1941 (Moffett 1942) and was abundant from <br />Willow Beach to Searchlight (Cottonwood Landing) by 1950 (Jonez and <br />Sumner 1954). An excellent rainbow trout (Salmo gairdneri) fishery was <br />established following stocking in 1935 (Moffett 1942; Jonez and Sumner <br />1954). Largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides), channel catfish <br />(Ictalurus Dunctatus), and carp (Cyprinus car io) were also collected or <br />sighted below Hoover Dam in the early 1940 s (Moffett 1942), although <br />the exact time of their introductions is unknown. <br />Further alterations in this section of the river occurred during <br />the formation of Lake Mohave with the construction of Davis Dam in 1950. <br />Lake Mohave flooded 73,815 km2 of desert area and developed 322 km <br />of new shoreline (Jonez and Sumner 1954). Lentic habitats were thus <br />formed in the 75 km stretch from Eldorado Canyon to Davis Dam. Extensive <br />stands of mesquite (Prosopsis sp.), willow (Salix sp.), cottonwood <br />(Populus deltoides) and other shoreline vegetation were inundated by <br />rising water levels (Dill 1944) in present-day Cottonwood Basin. <br />Extensive areas of gravel from proximal washes became the predominant <br />shoreline substrate, while the inundated vegetation provided submerged <br />zones of cover. River conditions still persisted below Hoover Dam, but <br />currents were reduced as Lake Mohave receded into Black Canyon. <br />Periphyton and macrophyte growth were immediately reduced in the <br />lower reaches but persisted in most areas of Black Canyon (Jonez and <br />Sumner 1954). Aquatic insect abundances declined, apparently due to the <br />destruction of breeding habitats in downstream areas (Jonez and Sumner <br />1954). Centrarchids and channel catfish became abundant in the <br />reservoir. Trout were caught occasionally throughout the reservoir but