Pallid Sturgeon Recovery Plan

• Description: related to the Platte River Endangered Species Partnership ‎(aka Platte River Recovery Implementation Program or PRRIP)‎,
• State: NE
• Basin: South Platte
• Water Division: 1
• Date: 11/7/1993
• Author: Pallid Sturgeon Recovery Team, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
• Title: Recovery Plan for the Pallid Sturgeon ‎(Scaphirhynchus albus)‎
• Water Supply Pro - Doc Type: Report/Study

TABLE OF CONTENTS
TITLE
PAGE
RECOVERY BACKGROUND AND STRATEGY . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . iii
PALLID STURGEON RECOVERY TEAM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . iv
DISCLAIMER . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . v
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . vi
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . vii
Part I INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 1
History. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 1
General Description . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 1
Historical Distribution and Abundance . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 3
Present Distribution and Abundance . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 5
Habitat Preference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 5
Current Velocity . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 7
Turbidity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 8
Water Depth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 8
Substrate. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 8
Temperature. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 8
Life History . . . . . . • • • • • • • •
• • • • • • • • 8
Reproductive Biology . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 8
Food and Feeding Habits . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 9
Age and Growth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 10
Reasonsfor Decline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 10
Habitat Loss . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . 10
Commercial Harvest . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . 13
Pollution /Contaminants . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 14
Hybridization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 14
Part II RECOVERY . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 16
Recovery Objectives and Criteria . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 16
Recovery- Priority Management Areas . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 16
Recovery Outline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 19
Recovery Outline Narrative . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 24
LITERATURE CITED . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Part III IMPLEMENTATION SCHEDULE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
FIGURES
NO. PAGE
1. Comparative Diagrams of the Ventral Surface of the Head of
Shovelnose Sturgeon and Pallid Sturgeon, Showing Several
Measurement Ratios of Value for Identification . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
2. Historic Range of Pallid Sturgeon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
j 3. Recent Occurrence of Pallid Sturgeon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • 6
i 4. Recovery- Priority Management Areas • 18