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9 <br />The Walter Walker Wildlife Area contains a flooded gravel pit <br />(25.6 ha in area; 0.5-2.0 m deep) connected to the Colorado River near <br />Grand Junction, Colorado. No aquatic vegetation occurs in the pit, <br />but tamarisk along the shoreline is flooded in spring and provides <br />cover for small fish. The bottom of the pit is composed primarily of <br />gravel covered with thick layers of silt. The shoreline is lined with <br />cobbles (5 to 10 cm in diameter). The pond is permanently connected <br />to the river by a 6 m canal so fish have free access to the main river. <br />The Colorado River near Grand Junction, Colorado is relatively <br />wide (20-25 m), with alternating stretches of slow and fast water. <br />The banks are vegetated primarily with tamarisk and cottonwood trees. <br />Large quantities of irrigation water are removed upstream from the <br />study area, so streamflow is substantially reduced during the summer <br />months. Periodic irrigation return flows bolster the volume of the <br />Colorado throughout this section of river.