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spillway basin and the river, was known to be effective throughout all but the largest spills from <br />the reservoir. During the 2005, water overtopped a small portion of the weir (estimated to be <br />approximately four to six inches and about one to two feet wide). Because it was such a small <br />section of the spillway channel and because it was on the very top of the water, it is highly <br />unlikely that any fish were able to escape from the spillway basin to the river; however, it is <br />possible and therefore, final escapement numbers in 2005 may be an underestimate of actual <br />escapement. <br />Based on the life stages present in the spillway basin, it is likely that each of the species <br />escaped from the reservoir between drainings except for green sunfish, which are apparently <br />established in the spillway basin. It is also possible that smallmouth bass are established in the <br />spillway basin as there was no spill in 2004 and a number of smallmouth bass between 1S0 and <br />200mm were captured during the initial draining of 2005. These fish could have been YOY in <br />2004 and thus would have resulted from spawning in the spillway basin. It is also possible, <br />however, that temperatures in the spillway basin are low enough to prohibit normal growth of <br />smallmouth bass. If this were the case, these 150 - 200mm fish could have been older than YOY <br />in 2004. Whatever the source of these smaller smallmouth bass (escapement or spawned in the <br />spillway basin), these fish are not likely to be the source of YOY fish seen in the Duchesne <br />River. It is more probable that smallmouth bass, in addition to reproducing in the reservoir and <br />the spillway basin are also reproducing in the Duchesne River. <br />Escapement Rates <br />The target species (smallmouth bass, walleye) were found during the initial draining of <br />the spillway basin in 2002 and in almost every subsequent sampling effort. Because it is difficult <br />to differentiate a fish that has escaped from the reservoir from a fish that was spawned in the <br />16 <br />