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<br />projections of scales mounted between microscope slides. Annuli were clearly defined, because <br />rapid growth during the warm season was followed by severe winter conditions. Although the <br />sample size was small (N=26), the pattern of weight-at-age was clear (Table 1) and compared <br />favorably with growth patterns from a neighboring population upstream in the Yampa River <br />(Nesler 1990). In model simulations, spawning losses (7.7% wet body mass) were subtracted <br />from pike larger than 660 mm on 15 June (simulation day 45), based on the difference in post- <br />spawning length-weight regression in June and regressions in May and October. <br />The proportional contribution of different prey species in the diet was estimated from stomach <br />samples collected during the spring and fall 1993 in the Yampa River, and in May-June 1994 <br />in the Ouray reach, Green River. Stomach contents were identified to species or the lowest <br />possible taxonomic level. We measured total or standard prey lengths (mm) and wet weights <br />(mg). Diet composition was computed separately for each age class of northern pike, and was <br />used to partition daily rations into estimated consumption rates on Colorado squawfish and other <br />prey in the bioenergetic simulations. Since nearly all prey items in the stomachs were cyprinids, <br />we assigned an energy density of 1196 cal (4991 J) per gram wet body mass to Colorado <br />squawfish and other prey (Hewett and Johnson 1992). The energy density of northern pike was <br />treated as a constant 1049 cal/g (4391 J/g; Wahl and Stein 1991). <br />Model Simulation <br />We ran the model to predict daily consumption over 365 d (1 May to 30 April) for each age <br />class of pike. Growth for each cohort was fitted to spring (May-June) and autumn (October) <br />age-specific body mass estimates. A baseline run, using age-specific diet composition from <br />