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<br />SPRING RESULTS <br /> <br />Physical Parameters <br /> <br />The LCR was declining from spring run-off during the April trip (Figure 2). This <br />spring runoff began on 16 March, peaked at 363 cubic feet per second (cfs) on <br />17 March, and thereafter declined (as measured at Cameron Gage station, <br />Figure 2). During the trip, above base flows decreased from 107 cfs on 29 March <br />to 6.4 cfs on 7 April (Figure 2). Turbidity decreased from a high of 1,936 NTUs <br />on 29 March to a low of 55 NTUs on 7 April (Figure 3). Daily afternoon water <br />temperatures remained a steady 19 DC. <br /> <br />During the May trip, the LCR ran at base flows and was blue. Turbidity ranged <br />between 9.1 and 12 NTUs (mean = 10.3 NTUs; Figure 3). Daily afternoon water <br />temperatures ranged from 19 to 22 DC (mean = 20.8 DC). <br /> <br />Effort and Catch <br /> <br />During both spring trips, a total of 1,085 hoop net sets were deployed, yielding <br />25,218 hours of fishing effort (Table 3). Catch per unit effort (i.e., total HBC <br />captured/total net hours; CPUE) for HBC captured in hoop nets was higher <br />during the May trip (2,616 fish captured, 0.209 fish/net-hr) than during the April <br />trip (1,255 fish captured, 0.099 fish/net-hr). Fishing effort during both trips <br />combined produced a total catch of 6,840 fish, for all species (Table 4). <br /> <br />Species Composition <br /> <br />The dominant species captured during both spring trips were HBC (3,871 fish; <br />57%) and speckled dace (1,482 fish; 21 %), however, species compositions <br />between the two trips showed some differences. HBC comprised the largest <br />proportion of fish caught on both trips (70% and 52%; Figure 4). Speckled dace <br />increased from 10% (188 fish) in April to 26% (1,294 fish) in May. Exotic species <br />collected (in order from most to least abundant captured) were fathead minnow <br />(Pimephales promelas), red shiner (Cyprinella lutrensis), plains killifish (Fundulus <br />zebrinus), black bullhead (Ameiurus natalis), carp (Cyprinus carpio), channel <br />catfish (Ictalurus punctatus), rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss), and green <br />sunfish (Lepomis cyanellus). During April, 10.7% of the fish captured were <br />nonnative; while during May 9.1 % of the fish captured were nonnative. Under- <br />represented by hoop net catches were large carp (> 300 mm) observed in the <br />LCR during these sampling trips (LCR crew members, pers. obs.). Large carp <br />were seen from the LCR confluence area to above Chute Falls, but none were <br />captured in hoop nets. <br /> <br />Length Frequencies and Catch <br /> <br />Overall, more HBC were captured during the May trip (2,616 fish) than during <br />the April trip (1,255 fish; Figure 5). A large proportion (77%, 2,987 fish) of HBC <br />during both trips combined fell into the 75 to 150 mm size class (Figure 5); <br /> <br />18 <br />