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that the historic range of pallid sturgeon once included the Mississippi River
<br />Keokuk, IA, before the river was converted into a series of locks and dams for commercial navigation
<br />(Coker 1930).
<br />Carlson and Pflieger (198 1) stated that pallid sturgeon are rare, but widely distributed in the Missouri
<br />River and in the Mississippi River downstream from the mouth of the Missouri River.
<br />The pallid sturgeon appears nearly extirpated from large segments of its former range. In 1991, pallid
<br />sturgeon were discovered in the Atachafalya River in Louisiana (Reed, Louisiana Dept. Wildlife and
<br />Fisheries, pers. comm. 1991).
<br />Today, they are only occasionally found in a few selected areas. Since 1980, reports of most frequent v
<br />occurrence are from the Missouri River: 1) between the Marias River and Ft. Peck Reservoir in X
<br />Montana; 2) between Ft. Peck Dam and Lake Sakakawea (near Williston, North Dakota); 3) within
<br />the lower 70 mi (113 km) of the Yellowstone River downstream of Fallon, Montana; 4) in the
<br />headwaters of Lake Sharpe in South Dakota; 5) near the mouth of the Platte River near Plattsmouth,
<br />NE; and 6) below river mile 218 to the mouth in the State of Missouri. Areas of most recent and
<br />frequent occurrence on the Mississippi River are 6) near Chester, IL; 7) Caruthersville, MO; and 8) in
<br />the Atchafalaya River in Louisiana at the Old River Control Structure, where the Atchafalaya diverges
<br />from the Mississippi River (USFWS 1993). Of 872 pallid sturgeon records prior to 1998, 70 percent /
<br />were reported from the Missouri River. Approximately 10 percent of the Missouri River records were f c7�18 0
<br />from below Gavins Point Dam; the majority of records were from intensive sampling efforts in
<br />Montana, North and South Dakota, and include recaptures. In addition, 9 percent of the total records
<br />came from the Yellowstone River, 5 percent from the Mississippi River, 14 percent from the ` is,yw�
<br />Atchafalaya River, and less than 2 percent from the St. Francis, Platte, Ohio, Kansas, and Big b I M`
<br />Sunflower Rivers (Steve Krentz, USFWS, pers. comm. 2000). 6 n1 ►`�S °"'�`
<br />Keenlyne (1989) updated previously published and unpublished information on distribution and
<br />abundance of pallid sturgeon. He reported pre -1980 catch records for the Mississippi River from its
<br />mouth upstream to its confluence with the Missouri River, a length of 1,153 mi (1,857 km); in the lower
<br />35 mi (56 km) of the Yazoo/Big Sunflower and St. Francis Rivers (tributaries to the Mississippi); in the
<br />Missouri River from its mouth to Fort Benton, MT, a length of 2,063 mi (3,323 km); and in the lower
<br />64 km of the Kansas River, the lower 21 mi (34 km) of the Platte River, and the lower 200 mi (322
<br />km) of the Yellowstone River (tributaries to the Missouri River). The total range is approximately
<br />3,500 mi (5,635 km) of river. States within or bordering this range are Montana, North Dakota, South
<br />Dakota, Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Mississippi, and
<br />Louisiana.
<br />Life History
<br />Reproductive Biology - The knowledge base regarding reproduction or spawning activities of pallid
<br />1 n tylo5� : �dwr+
<br />c.( Kv°`b
<br />Status Range Wide -PS 99
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