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for pallid sturgeon survival and should not be ruled out for future recovery efforts.78 <br />The importance of this area to pallid sturgeon and its life history is currently <br />unknown and may be important to pallid sturgeon. Further information should be <br />obtained to further quantify its importance to the species. <br />C.5. Recommendations <br />Additional studies will be required in order to obtain the data necessary to establish <br />specific quantifiable objectives for the pallid sturgeon in the lower Platte River. The <br />following recommendations are based on pallid sturgeon group discussions and data <br />presented at the September 2000 workshop and collaboration with the FWS: <br />1. Habitat Protection. Preserve, or restore where appropriate, the <br />hydro - geomorphic processes and functions that are responsible for creating or <br />maintaining the physical habitat template characteristic of the lower Platte River: <br />a dynamic, sandy, free - flowing, braided river. Recovery actions should attempt to <br />restore or maintain natural hydrologic regimes, including sediment discharge <br />relationships, and work to capture the extent of the natural variability inherent in <br />these physical processes. Actions which alter these processes or limit system <br />variability should be examined both incrementally and additively to determine the <br />nature and extent of their impact to pallid sturgeon recovery. <br />2. Document, Characterize and Assess Pallid Sturgeon Habitat. Identify <br />existing data and collect additional information to determine the historic and <br />current chemical and physical habitat conditions and processes in the Platte River. <br />Documentation and characterization of quantifiable parameters should include <br />baseline information on hydrology, sediment transport, temperature, bed form, <br />channel complexity and water quality. Habitat conditions and processes should <br />be related to habitat used by pallid sturgeon. An assessment can then be <br />conducted to determine the quality and quantity of habitat for pallid sturgeon in <br />the Platte River. <br />3. Determine the Contribution of the Lower Platte River to Recovery of <br />Pallid Sturgeon. Develop baseline information on pallid sturgeon for the Platte <br />River, including the abundance, distribution and population structure of pallid <br />sturgeon in the Platte River. Determine the importance of the Platte River for <br />reproduction and document subsequent larval development and juvenile rearing <br />through recruitment to the adult population. Specific objectives to be addressed <br />in the next 5 years include: <br />a. Document habitat use, relative habitat preference, and species assemblages <br />associated with adult and juvenile pallid sturgeon in the lower Platter River. <br />78 Data presented by Vaughn Snook, University of Nebraska -Lincoln, at workshop on <br />September 26, 2000. <br />32 <br />