7354

• UCREFRP Catalog Number: 7354
• Author: Wydoski, R. S.
• Title: Biological Review of Endangered or Imperiled Fish in the Upper Colorado River Basin.
• USFW Year: 1985.
• USFW - Doc Type: Washington, D. C.
• Copyright Material: NO

The UCRB Endangered Species Recovery Coordinator (USFWS) serves as liaison to
assure that the biological, hydrological, and habitat investigations of the U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service will provide the needed information for making
effective consultations under Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act. It is
very apparent that coordination of the work by the various investigators into a
fully integrated program would reduce duplication of effort, make more efficient
use of available resources (i.e. personnel and funds), and produce needed
biological information in a more timely manner. In addition, continuity of such
work requires dependable funding levels so that the program can be carried out
as planned. There is a need for developing a team effort for biological work on
the UCRB. Although differences occur in policies and administrative procedures
among agencies or organizations, I believe that a cooperative team effort that
is composed of biologists from federal or state conservation agencies can be
achieved. The work should be divided among the different workers so that they
have responsibility for a particular segment of work or a reach of river that
can be accomplished within their resources. The field investigators recognize
and agree that overall coordination is needed.
Therefore, I recommend that the UCRB Endangered Species Recovery Coordinator
continue with his assigned responsibility and authority to direct biological
efforts in meeting clear, measurable objectives that are approved by the
Biological Subcommittee. This Coordinator could screen the needed work,
identify the capabilities of active workers, and allocate funds to assur that
high quality work is attained with the constraints of time and available
resources. This person would also be responsible for summarizing, inter reting,
and refining biological results from field investigations as a collectiv UCRB
effort.
II. SYNTHESIS OF EXISTING BIOLOGICAL DATA
The Interim Report: CRFP Database Evaluation by John Hamill dated April 26,
1984 provides an accurate description of the data that has been collected, the
analyses that have been completed, and the analyses that are needed for
establishing relationships between the habitat and fish.
The efforts of the CRFP were directed primarily at obtaining information on the
biology of the Colorado squawfish. However, useful information has also been
collected on the humpback chub in the Colorado River at Black Rocks and
Westwater Canyon and on the razorback sucker in the Green River.
Sampling this river system is difficult because of logistics (i.e., limi ed
access to some reaches of the river), variable streamflows that are haza dous to
the investigators, turbidity of the water that obscures vision of the
investigators, variable water conditions that make sampling difficult (e g.,
deep areas and reaches with high water velocities), and selectivity of t e
sampling gear. However, enough sampling has now been accomplished that
standardization of the sampling gear and protocol is possible.
The CRFP and other past and present study efforts provide an adequate knowledge
of the present distribution of rare fish in the UCRB. Additional knowledge on
distribution and abundance will be gained from other studies that are pl nned
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